Some commentators have brushed aside China’s new foreign anti-bribery law as window dressing and a feeble attempt to bring China into compliance with international anti-corruption treaties. The proof will be in the pudding – how does China enforce the law? As written, however, there are some interesting questions as to its interpretation and applications. The newly enacted law criminalizes bribes given to foreign (i.e., non-PRC)...

There is a strange silence in the world of webinars, seminars and the blogosphere – there are no more predictions of Armageddon — the world is coming to an end with the new UK Bribery Act. Why? Where is everyone? There is no way the Ministry of Justice Guidance somehow clarified the law so that companies know what to do – in fact, my favorite...

With the latest string of insider trading prosecutions, the government has demonstrated its commitment to aggressive “pushing the envelope” criminal prosecutions. Compliance officers need to put this issue on their radar screens and add it to the mix of risk areas. The SEC and Justice Department are on a “moral crusade” — the leadership of the enforcement division is now a former federal prosecutor. The...

H.L. Mencken The kind of man who wants government to adopt and enforce his ideas is always the kind of man whose ideas are idiotic – H. L. Mencken As the House Judiciary Committee gets ready to hold an FCPA oversight hearing, I thought it would be timely to examine one of the more significant FCPA reform proposals Robert W. Tarun and Peter P. Tomczak,...

With the new SEC whistleblower rules, companies now face a difficult decision of whether and when to disclose to the SEC and DOJ potential FCPA violations. The issue is not new but the dynamic will certainly be different. For example, when it is clear that whistleblower intends to report allegations to the SEC, the company needs to consider whether to make a pre-emptive report to...

FCPA websites and blogs are filled with company advertisements offering due diligence services, guaranteeing facts and results. But this is only one piece in the due diligence puzzle and process. Designing a review protocol, ensuring that information is gathered and reviewed, and most importantly, requiring a brief memo reflecting the review and decision-making process, along with a statement of reasons for approving a third party,...

The Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Inspector General (HHS OIG) is flexing its muscle these days – on Aprill 12, 2011, the OIG notified Howard Solomon, the long-time CEO and Chairman of Forest Laboratories, a manufacturer of antidepressant pharmaceuticals, that it was contemplating proceedings to exclude him from all federal health care programs. The notification came in the wake of Forest Laboratories’...

The headlines these days focus on the SEC whistleblower rules and the implications for corporations.  While the whistleblower rules are important and justify vigilant compliance efforts, there is a more significant, and possibly damaging, trend for FCPA enforcement. Corporations now have to consider the risk that the government will conduct wiretaps of target telephones.  In the Shot Show sting, the government demonstrated it was willing...

The headlines these days focus on the SEC whistleblower rules and the implications for corporations.  While the whistleblower rules are important and justify vigilant compliance efforts, there is a more significant, and possibly damaging, trend for FCPA enforcement. Corporations now have to consider the risk that the government will conduct wiretaps of target telephones.  In the Shot Show sting, the government demonstrated it was willing...

The headlines these days focus on the SEC whistleblower rules and the implications for corporations.  While the whistleblower rules are important and justify vigilant compliance efforts, there is a more significant, and possibly damaging, trend for FCPA enforcement. Corporations now have to consider the risk that the government will conduct wiretaps of target telephones.  In the Shot Show sting, the government demonstrated it was willing...