Even with the absence of any major DOJ FCPA enforcement actions, DOJ issued an interesting FCPA Opinion Letter last week addressing application of the FCPA in circumstances where organizations face imminent serious bodily harm.  While the situation may appear to be unique, it is a factual scenario that occurs more often than DOJ recognizes. In October 2021, a Requestor submitted an Opinion Letter application that...

Federal prosecutors enjoy flipping through the United States Criminal Code, 18 U.S.C. §§ 1 et seq., to pick out tools to charge defendants.  Over the last ten years, DOJ’s reliance on criminal charges in FCPA cases has evolved.  The FCPA only punishes the bribe-givers and not the bribe-takers.  The Biden Administration is proposing to amend the FCPA to fill in this gap.  To fill in...

While everyone watches Russia’s President Putin for signs that he plans to order an invasion of its neighbor Ukraine, it may be helpful to take stock of where we are with the ever-changing maze of trade sanctions compliance.  The Biden Administration has elevated international trade sanctions and export controls as a top priority.  In contrast to the Trump strategy, Biden has dedicated more effort to...

I am pleased to announce the release by Corporate Compliance Insights of my new book: Making Money is Not A Mission: 10 Essays on the Compliance Culture Revolution. Thank you to CCI for its continuing support. CCI continues its position as the leading forum for compliance thought leadership. My new book is available for download HERE. Thank you to everyone for your support, friendship and...

As for the Judiciary, the U.S. Supreme Court did not issue any relevant decisions nor grant certiorari in any notable FCA cases in FY21. To the contrary, they denied petitions to review appellate cases of potential significance (e.g., in June 2021 the Supreme Court declined to review a case from the Seventh Circuit regarding the government’s ability to move to dismiss over a relator’s objection)....

Worth the Wait? DOJ finally released its Fraud Statistics for FY 2021 and announced the “second largest amount recorded” since 1986: FCPA Settlement and judgment exceed $5.6 billion Jessica Sanderson, Partner at The Volkov Law Group, joins us for her annual review of False Claims Act enforcement and issues. In Part I, Jessica reviews the enforcement statistics. In Part II, Jessica discusses False Claims Act...

LRN conducts an annual Ethics and Compliance Program Effectiveness Report (“LRN Report”) that is a must-read for business leaders, managers, investors, compliance professionals and other stakeholders. LRN’s annual report has addressed key issues surrounding the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on companies and ethics and compliance programs.  Last year’s report, which was divided into two parts, and this year’s 2022 Report provides fresh data on...

The Justice Department trumpeted its criminal prosecutions against defendants charged with Libor-rigging.  It had a right to toot its own horn.  But many of these convictions have not withstood the scrutiny of appellate courts. Recently, the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, in United States v. Connolly, reversed the criminal convictions of Matthew Connolly and Gavin Black.  Interestingly, the Second Circuit panel rejected...

Criminal antitrust is burning a path in prosecuting illegal wage-fixing agreements in labor markets.  The Justice Department warned companies over five years ago and now DOJ is executing on its warning.  Over the last two years, the Antitrust Division has indicted four companies and seventeen (17) individuals.  The Antitrust Division is promising more indictments. At the end of 2021, DOJ indicted six individuals, one of...

Chief compliance officers have plenty of things to do and risks to manage.  CCOs have a unique remit and a set of skills that should be applied whenever needed.  While I am not trying to increase CCO workload (and forgive me if I am), CCOs should have responsibility for design and implementation of an effective criminal antitrust compliance program. For many years, antitrust compliance was...