Click here to read Steptoe & Johnson’s 2019 FCPA/Anti-Corruption Year in Review. US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) enforcement authorities announced a steady stream of individual and corporate enforcement matters throughout 2019, some with eye-popping fines. Overall, the Department of Justice (DOJ) and Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) reported 50 FCPA-related actions (including 31 by … Continue Reading
The World Bank Group (the Bank) published a joint Sanctions System Annual Report for fiscal year 2019 on October 10. This report, which reflects on the Sanctions System’s growth since its implementation twenty years ago, provides an overview of activities undertaken by the Bank’s Integrity Vice Presidency (INT), Office of Suspension and Debarment (OSD), and … Continue Reading
On September 5, OFAC issued regulations to implement Executive Order (EO) 13851 related to the situation in Nicaragua. Signed on November 27, 2018, EO 13851 blocks the property of persons who served as Nicaraguan government officials at any time on or after January 10, 2007, persons who are responsible or complicit in serious human rights … Continue Reading
The US Department of Justice (DOJ) Criminal Division announced the publication of updated Guidance on Evaluating Corporate Compliance Programs (2019 Guidance) on April 30, 2019. As discussed in our 2017 FCPA Mid-Year Review, the original guidance, published on February 8, 2017 (2017 Guidance), essentially set forth a list of 11 topics and over 100 detailed … Continue Reading
US government enforcement of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) remained robust in 2018, and the trend of increasing multi-jurisdictional cooperation and enforcement continued throughout the year. In the United States, the 33 combined individual and corporate FCPA enforcement actions concluded by the US Department of Justice (DOJ) and Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in … Continue Reading
On August 24, 2018, the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit rejected an attempt by the Department of Justice (DOJ) to expand the jurisdictional reach of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) over foreign nationals. The three-judge panel affirmed the lower court’s ruling in United States v. Hoskins that a non-resident foreign national … Continue Reading
2017 was a year of transition for US enforcement of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and saw a substantial increase in global anti-corruption enforcement. As we advised in our 2017 FCPA Mid-Year Review, last year started with a flurry of FCPA enforcement at the conclusion of the Obama Administration, followed by a prolonged lull … Continue Reading
Steptoe’s Brigida Benitez and John London authored an article in The Maryland Journal of International Law titled “Has the International Olympic Committee Risen Above Corruption?” The article reviews the International Olympic Committee’s rules and procedures to assess their adequacy in addressing potential corruption. More information is available here.… Continue Reading
As we discussed in last week’s blog post, on November 29, 2017, Deputy Attorney General Rod J. Rosenstein made remarks at the American Conference Institute’s 34th International Conference on the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) recognizing the success of the FCPA Enforcement Plan and Guidance (commonly referred to as the FCPA “Pilot Program”), which had … Continue Reading
In November, the US Circuit Court for the Second Circuit declined to rehear en banc its July 19, 2017 decision in United States v. Allen, which recognized the testimony of a criminal defendant that is compelled by law in a foreign jurisdiction cannot be used, either directly or indirectly, as evidence against him at trial. … Continue Reading
Yesterday, in remarks made at the 34th International Conference on the FCPA, Deputy Attorney General Rod J. Rosenstein recognized the success of the FCPA Pilot Program and announced a revised FCPA Corporate Enforcement Policy geared at “increas[ing] the volume of voluntary disclosures” and “enhanc[ing] the [DOJ’s] ability to identify and punish culpable individuals.” A transcript … Continue Reading
In June 2017, the DOJ released the first two corporate FCPA resolutions since the new administration took office. In both cases, the DOJ issued declination letters “consistent with” the FCPA Pilot Program and required the disgorgement of associated gains. In one of the two instances, the declination letter also required the forfeiture of funds withheld … Continue Reading
On July 19, 2017, Steptoe’s Matthew Herrington and Brady Cassis co-authored a piece titled “Recent Settlements Reveal the Hidden ABAC Risks and Rewards of Internal Audits” for The Anti-Corruption Report. In the article, the authors unpack the recent settlements revealing several strategies for successfully managing internal audits. For more information, the full article can be … Continue Reading
On June 5, 2017, the United States Supreme Court unanimously held that disgorgement in SEC enforcement actions operates as a penalty in Kokesh v. Securities and Exchange Commission. This means that disgorgement is subject to the federal five-year statute of limitations under 28 U.S.C. §2462. The Kokesh decision settled a dispute between the US Court … Continue Reading
On July 6, 2017, Steptoe’s Matthew Herrington and Brady Cassis coauthored a piece in Compliance Complete on the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) standard. The article breaks down how the standard has fared in its first nine months, and provides straightforward ways compliance officers can use the ISO standards to bolster their existing anti-corruption programs. … Continue Reading
On June 29, 2017, Steptoe published its US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) Mid-Year Review. There was a flurry of enforcement actions in the beginning of January to start off 2017, including some major resolutions that broke new ground in international anti-corruption enforcement. After the change in administration on January 20, 2017, however, there were … Continue Reading
The year 2016 ushered in a flurry of activity in global anti-corruption and US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) enforcement. After 2015, when the US Department of Justice (DOJ) and US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) brought their lowest number of enforcement actions in a decade, 2016 not only saw the largest number and highest … Continue Reading
On October 7, the World Bank Group (the Bank) Integrity Vice Presidency (INT) released its Annual Update for the 2016 Fiscal Year (the FY2016 Report or the Report). This Report emphasizes INT’s endeavor to protect Bank-funded procurement projects in the immediately preceding fiscal year, and sets out INT’s current and future policy, investigation, and enforcement … Continue Reading
On April 29, 2016 the Canadian Supreme Court ruled that the Ontario Superior Court of Justice could not compel the World Bank to produce records or require its personnel to testify in court. The case, World Bank Group v. Wallace, challenged the immunities granted to the Bank that cover its archives and employees. Over the … Continue Reading
The Department of Justice (DOJ) is incentivizing companies to self-disclose violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA). On April 5, the head of DOJ’s Criminal Division, Assistant Attorney General Leslie Caldwell, announced a one-year pilot program intended to encourage voluntary disclosures of corporate wrong-doing. The guidance, entitled “The Fraud Section’s Foreign Corrupt Practices Act … Continue Reading
In 2015, enforcement of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) continued to evolve as US government agencies focused their investigations and other countries ramped up their own involvement. While enforcement statistics and monetary penalties remained steady, or even lower than previous years, 2015 trends pointed towards a more complex compliance environment going forward, with increasing … Continue Reading
On November 30, 2015, a UK court approved for the first time ever the suspension of criminal proceedings against a company under terms set out in a deferred prosecution agreement (DPA). In exchange, Standard Bank Plc agreed to comply with various terms, including payments to the Government of Tanzania of $6 million in compensation, disgorgement … Continue Reading
