At a hearing on November 30, 2015, Southwark Crown Court approved the first deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) in the UK. DPAs have been available for use by the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) since February 2014, following their introduction in the Crime and Courts Act 2013. Lord Justice Leveson approved the DPA proposed by the SFO with London-based ICBC Standard Bank (the Bank). The Bank had been the subject of an indictment alleging failure to prevent bribery contrary to section 7 of the Bribery Act 2010. In agreeing the DPA, the Bank accepted responsibility for failing to prevent bribery and agreed to pay penalties totaling $32.2 million, as well as to an independent review of its anti-bribery policies.

BACKGROUND -

DPAs allow for the suspension of prosecutorial action against a company for a fixed period of time where the defendant company agrees to comply with conditions set by the prosecutor. In May 2015, the SFO signaled its intention to begin using DPAs by announcing that it had issued its first invitation letters to companies under investigation, offering the opportunity to enter into DPA negotiations. The Bank’s DPA marks the first application by the SFO for approval of a DPA and the first use of this mechanism to settle an offence under section 7 of the Bribery Act 2010.