Corruption, Crime & Compliance

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12 Jun, 2023

Episode 278 — “The New FCPA”: Sanctions and Export Control Enforcement and Compliance

Last year, the Department of Justice warned global companies of a new, aggressive strategy for enforcement of trade sanctions and export controls. Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco stated that sanctions and export enforcement constituted “The New FCPA.” DOJ, the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Asset Control (“OFAC”) and the Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (“BIS”) have joined forces to aggressively enforce sanctions...

General

7 Jun, 2023

The Supreme Court Rejects Challenge to False Claims Act Intent Standard

The Supreme Court , in a unanimous decision, rejected a challenge by corporate pharmacy defendants, to the intent requirement in a Medicaid and Medicare over-billing False Claims Act case. Justice Clarence Thomas, who has established himself as the lead justice concerning False Claims Act cases, wrote the unanimous opinion. The defendants, SuperValu and Safeway, claimed that thier alleged overbilling did not meet the intent requirements...

General

6 Jun, 2023

Justice Department Announces First Criminal Cases from Multi-Agency Disruptive Technology Strike Force

The Justice Department has made it clear that it intends to prioritize criminal prosecution of national security cases to prevent hostile nation-states from illegally acquiring sensitive U.S technology. To this end, DOJ created the Disruptive Technology Strike Force (“DTSF”), which is led by both DOJ and the Department of Commerce to disrupt illegal procurement networks. The DTSF reflects DOJ’s hyper-focus on national security crimes, including...

Podcasts

5 Jun, 2023

Episode 277 — The Murad OFAC Settlement and Sanctions Compliance Lessons

Over an eight-year period ending in 2018, Murad, a U.S. cosmetics company, illegally exported goods and services to Iran in 62 separate transactions worth approximately $11 million. Murad was acquired by Unilever United States (“Unilever”) in 2015. Once discovered, Unilever voluntarily disclosed the conduct to OFAC. The fallout from Murad’s long-running conspiracy: Unilever paid $3.3 million to OFAC for its Iran Sanctions violations. Interestingly, OFAC...

General

31 May, 2023

Ransomware Criminal Prosecution of Russian National Underscores Pervasive Ransomware Risks

In today’s world of cyber threats, many companies have fallen victim to ransomware attacks. Corporate boards and senior executives face serious issues when their companies are attacked. The payment of ransom is not only costly, but presents significant ethics and compliance issues. Many companies often conduct ransomware exercises to develop common scenarios and potential responses. It is an issue worthy of board, senior management and...

General

31 May, 2023

Murad Pays OFAC $3.3 Million for Iran Sanctions Violations; Former Senior Executive Pays $175k

General

30 May, 2023

Gartner Settles FCPA Case with SEC for $2.5 Million

The SEC has been racking up several FCPA enforcement actions. DOJ appears to be declining many of these cases. The division of enforcement appeared to follow a pattern – on larger cases with more pervasive violations, DOJ and the SEC would each bring an enforcement action; while on relatively “smaller” cases, the SEC would bring a case and the DOJ would decline to prosecute. This...

Podcasts

29 May, 2023

Episode 276 — Review of Philips and Franks Int’l SEC FCPA Enforcement Actions

The SEC recently announced two separate FCPA SEC enforcement actions — the first against Franks International for $8 million for FCPA violations in Angola; and the second against Philips, a Dutch medical device company, for $62 million for FCPA violations in China. The SEC settlement actions underscored important bribery risks in Angola and China. Philips’ recent settlement is its second in the last ten years. ...

General

29 May, 2023

Memorial Day: A Day for Honor

Thank you to the brave men and women who have made the ultimate sacrifice. We honor their service, their courage, and their memories. Let us use this holiday to remind us all of our heroes and to honer them for their service.

General

24 May, 2023

TD Bank Eats $225 Million Termination Fee After AML Failures Doom Merger

Sam Finkelstein, an Associate at The Volkov Law Group, joins us for his first posting about TD Bank’s compliance failures. Sam can be reached at [email protected]. How much is an effective Anti-Money Laundering (“AML”) Compliance Program Worth? For Toronto-Dominion Bank (“TD”), the answer is at least $225 million––the amount that TD must now pay to First Horizon Bank, after backing out of a proposed $13.4...