I have had more than one corporate general counsel tell me that anti-corruption compliance is not very effective in protecting against foreign bribery.  Their argument is that a company’s compliance program boils down to the behavior of individual employees.  An employee will either decide to violate the law or comply with the law; the company’s compliance program has no influence on this decision.  According to...

The SEC is not a shrinking violet.  When it comes to FCPA enforcement, some focus more on the Justice Department – and given its criminal enforcement mission that is understandable.  But the SEC has a strong enforcement role to play, and in the last year or so, it has been flexing its enforcement muscle.  It is an important trend and one that is expected to...

A recent survey found that close to half of all responding companies had established or increased anti-corruption compliance.  That is a very positive response to increased FCPA enforcement.  It is time and money well spent.  Increased compliance reduces risk. Companies have to be realistic about the enforcement risks.  Most (if not all) major enforcement actions involve situations where there is a “systematic” breakdown in compliance. ...

One tricky issue at the beginning of every internal investigation is determining whether the government is investigating the same issue. If the government is conducting its own investigation, tricky issues can come up about informing employees that government investigators may contact them. As part of its war on white collar criminals, the government is employing tactics typically reserved for narcotics trafficking organizations and organized crime....

The debate surrounding FCPA enforcement and a compliance defense should be expanded to focus on the real issue at play – corporate criminal liability under the doctrine of respondeat superior.  The Chamber of Commerce has focused on the FCPA reform issue and has failed to gain much traction, especially in light of recent publicly-disclosed FCPA investigations. Several years ago the Chamber pursued changes in corporate...

The FCPA paparazzi like to wring its hands over anti-corruption compliance in China.  Some of the wringing makes sense; some does not. No company should avoid entering or expanding into China because of corruption risks.  Any company which decides not to enter China for that reason has a limited perspective.  China is a corruption compliance challenge.  You must enter China with a full plate of...

Companies frequently ignore the reality of FCPA enforcement and risks.  In the quest to ensure compliance, companies sometimes focus too much on the minutiae of compliance policies.  It is a mistake to devote the time and resources to answering these types of questions instead of focusing on some of the more significant issues facing compliance officers and in-house counsel.  The best illustration of this point...

Press reports have come out with supposed “news” – the Justice Department is considering launching a new industry sweep of global retailers.  This is no surprise. Recent events have underscored the risks that global retailers face when entering new markets.  There are plenty of risks facing global retailers – their business depends on customs approvals, licensing and zoning permits.  The Justice Department’s launch of a...

The stakes are high when it comes to a False Claims Act lawsuit.  Given the trebling of damages and a potential $11,000 per claim, a company can quickly face exposure to millions of dollars in liability. A potential False Claim Act lawsuit is filed under seal.  How can you learn about a potential false claim filing? Since most false claims act cases are filed by...

The Justice Department takes a lot of flack from the business community for settling civil and criminal cases with large fines and penalties.  The recent GlaxoSmithKline settlement of $3 billion underscored an important question – are fines a cost of doing business?  Or do high fines deter corporate misconduct? The answer to this question is hard to determine.  Economists argue that behavior is the result...