LATAM Airlines Agrees to Pay $22 Million to Settle FCPA Cases -

Last month, LATAM Airlines (“LATAM”), based in Santiago, Chile, agreed to pay $22 million to settle parallel civil and criminal proceedings involving alleged violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA). The allegations related to improper payments that the company made in an attempt to resolve a conflict with its unionized employees in Argentina. In connection with the settlement, LATAM admitted that executives of LAN Airlines S.A. (“LAN”), the company’s predecessor in interest, had agreed to pay an Argentinian consultant to negotiate a settlement with the intent that some money would be funneled to third parties with influence over the unions. In total, LAN’s management authorized $1.15 million in payments to the consultant, which were recorded as payments for a study of existing air routes in Argentina. LAN will pay $9.4 million in disgorgement and prejudgment interest to settle the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) case and a $12.75 million criminal penalty to the Department of Justice (DOJ), and it will maintain a compliance monitor for 27 months.