The FCPA is a broad statute.  As written, it covers a number of situations, and creates twists and turns in analysis. One of the more challenging areas to navigate is the issue of joint ventures. When you bring two companies together to operate jointly, there are a number of difficult issues to analyze. First, assuming there is an adequate business justification for a joint venture...

FCPA practitioners can suffer from myopia – a narrow focus on FCPA risks.  The FCPA does not apply to company actors who take bribes in exchange for awarding contracts to companies.  That situation is commonly referred to as “kickbacks.” Taking a step back, companies face a major triad of economic crime risks.  We all know about companies paying bribes to foreign officials.  There are two...

The old adage has taken hold in the compliance field – “Be careful what you ask for, you just may get it.” Compliance professionals are finally getting the respect they deserve.  They still have a long way to go.  General Counsels, Internal Auditors, Human Resource professionals are not going to accept the elevation of compliance professionals lying down. The corporate world is filled with back-stabbing,...

You can learn a lot from other people’s mistakes.  We all know that. In our FCPA world, we have a new poster child for blundering – Alstom.  The handwriting is on the wall – as time goes on, the Justice Department is building a bigger and bigger FCPA case against Alstom.  One of my favorite Dylan lyrics applies with full force – “You don’t need...

One of the hardest issues for compliance professionals is encouraging employees to raise concerns about ethics and compliance issues.  It has become even more difficult when the government establishes whistleblower programs offering financial rewards for employees to tell the government about the problems. Employee surveys provide important and interesting information.  A recent survey by CEB (here) found that only five percent of employee concerns are...

People who consistently miss the point are frustrating.  Focus is an important discipline.  Whatever you do in life, the ability to focus is critical. In the compliance arena, the same principle rings true.  It is easy to get “distracted” into a number of areas.  CCOs are bombarded each day with risks and threats.  Meetings, internal journals, conferences, and other information sources cite all the risks,...

The Justice Department and the SEC have pushed extraordinary changes in the field of anti-corruption compliance.  If one looks back five years ago and compares the so-called best-practices from 2008 and compares them to recent pronouncements on anti-corruption compliance, the differences are stark. Here is a summary chart on current program elements and some “best practices” cited by DOJ and the SEC in recent enforcement...

Sometimes predictions come true.  Starting in 2011, the SEC sent shock waves through the private equity industry when it launched a general inquiry into private equity compliance with the FCPA. The SEC issued ten letters to investment banks and private equity companies requesting information about their interactions with sovereign wealth funds and anti-corruption compliance programs.  The Director of the Serious Fraud Office made numerous pronouncements...

The difference between white collar and violent crime usually comes down to this: In most cases of violent crime, the actor’s state of mind is not at issue: the cases often center on whether the specific person charged was the one who killed/shot/assaulted the victim; if he or she was the actor, then the issue may turn to self defense.  (I know this is simplistic...

Webinar: March 31, 2014, 12 Noon ESTKeeping Your Due Diligence System Manageable Sign Up Here Companies recognize the need to develop robust due diligence procedures to review, monitor and audit third-party intermediaries, prospective acquisition and joint venture partners, and vendors/suppliers. A due diligence system, however, can get bogged down in details and procedures which have limited relevance. CCOs need to ensure that their due diligence system...