Commercial Law & Contracts

Read Government Contracting Law updates, articles, and legal commentary from leading lawyers and law firms:

News & Analysis as of May 25, 2013

Canadian Companies Beware: The Canadian Government Continues Its Focus on Anti-Corruption Prosecutions

by Lane Powell PC - White Collar Criminal... on 2/14/2013

Following on the heels of the U.S. Department of Justice’s recent guidance on the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (“FCPA”), events in Canada provide further reason for companies on both sides of the border to increase...more

A Closer Look at the Griffiths Energy Case: Lessons and Insights on Canadian Anti-Corruption Enforcement

by John Boscariol on 2/14/2013

On January 25, 2013, the Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench approved a $10.35 million penalty against Griffiths Energy International Inc. (Griffiths) for a violation of the Corruption of Foreign Public Officials Act1 (CFPOA) in...more

Significant CFPOA Amendments Proposed to Strengthen Canada’s Anti-Corruption Regime

by John Boscariol on 2/7/2013

On February 5, 2013 Bill S-14, the Fighting Foreign Corruption Act was introduced in Canada’s Senate. It proposes the most significant amendments to the Corruption of Foreign Public Officials Act (CFPOA) since it came into...more

Mexico Enacts Anti-Corruption Law for Federal Government Contracting

by Morgan Lewis on 10/12/2012

New law imposes heavy sanctions on individuals and companies offering money and gifts to obtain an advantage in the procurement of public contracts. Mexico has joined a growing number of Latin American countries that...more

The Six Most Significant Recent Amendments to the False Claims Act

by Michael Volkov on 7/23/2012

If you do business with the government (e.g. defense industry or health care), your greatest risk is the False Claims Act. The United States government is the world’s largest purchaser of goods and services. The...more

In-House Counsel: A Juggling Act (Part I of II)

by Michael Volkov on 7/17/2012

Let’s try and look at the world from the viewpoint of in-house counsel. In a two-part series, I try and focus on the current state of in-house counsel. Part I focuses on the overall view from a macro-standpoint. Part II...more

NC: Cutting Edge R&D and Cutting Edge Corporate Espionage

by Sands Anderson PC on 5/14/2012

The Federal Bureau of Investigation estimates that corporate espionage has cost American companies $13 billion from trade secrets stolen by company insiders and given to hostile foreign governments. To combat this...more

Prosecutorial misconduct stymies Department of Justice in FCPA trials

by Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP on 2/6/2012

In a stunning conclusion to the U.S. Department of Justice’s first guilty jury verdict against a corporation under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), the U.S. District Court, Central District of California...more

Construction OberView: "Objection, Privilege": Protecting the Attorney-Client Relationship amidst the Shifting Sands of False...

by Ober|Kaler on 1/10/2012

“Men must turn square corners when they deal with the Government.” – Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. With the Government’s prosecution of False Claims Act (“FCA”) and Contract Disputes Act (“CDA”) violations on the...more