On February 5, 2025, Attorney General Pamela Bondi issued a memo requiring DOJ’s Foreign Corrupt Practice Act (“FCPA”) Unit to “prioritize investigations related to foreign bribery that facilitates the criminal operations of...more
3/25/2025
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Cross-Border ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Priorities ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
France ,
Joint Task Force ,
Serious Fraud Office (SFO) ,
Significant Transnational Criminal Organization ,
Switzerland ,
Trump Administration ,
UK
On January 20, President Trump issued an Executive Order designating certain international cartels as Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs) or Specially Designated Global Terrorists (SDGTs). ...more
2/24/2025
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Bribery ,
Cartels ,
Compliance ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Executive Orders ,
FEPA ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
National Security ,
Risk Management ,
Significant Transnational Criminal Organization ,
Terrorist Organizations
The Fraud Section of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Criminal Division published its Year in Review last month, which showed an uptick for white collar enforcement in foreign corruption, financial and health care fraud. The...more
2/4/2025
/ Cryptocurrency ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Enforcement Statistics ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Fraud ,
Healthcare Fraud ,
Securities Fraud ,
Whistleblowers ,
White Collar Crimes
Latin America has been the focus of considerable attention by the DOJ. Despite strong ties based on trade, shared values and democratic traditions, Latin America is being tested with new and precarious challenges from...more
11/5/2024
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Biden Administration ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement ,
FEPA ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Latin America ,
Sanctions ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Webinars ,
White Collar Crimes
Latin America has been the focus of considerable attention by the Biden Administration and the DOJ. Despite strong ties based on trade, shared values and democratic traditions, Latin America is being tested with new and...more
10/8/2024
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Biden Administration ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement ,
FEPA ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Latin America ,
Sanctions ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Webinars ,
White Collar Crimes
On September 23, 2024, the Criminal Division of the U.S Department of Justice (“DOJ”) released revised Evaluation of Corporate Compliance Programs guidance (“September 2024 Guidance), last updated in March 2023....more
9/27/2024
/ Chief Compliance Officers ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Crimes ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Federal Pilot Programs ,
Guidance Update ,
Pilot Programs ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Whistleblower Awards ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies ,
Whistleblowers ,
White Collar Crimes
Two recent court Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) cases, a significant amendment to the Foreign Extortion Prevention Act (FEPA), and the new pilot whistleblower rewards program show that Anti-Corruption Enforcement...more
8/22/2024
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Priorities ,
Federal Pilot Programs ,
FEPA ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Foreign Official ,
Government Investigations ,
Latin America ,
South Africa ,
Whistleblower Awards ,
Whistleblowers
The U.S. Department of Justice’s (“DOJ”) Criminal Division announced its new Corporate Whistleblower Awards Pilot Program on August 1, 2024. The Pilot Program incentivizes whistleblowers to provide information to the DOJ so...more
8/8/2024
/ CFTC ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Crimes ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Federal Pilot Programs ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Pilot Programs ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Self-Reporting ,
Voluntary Disclosure ,
Whistleblower Awards ,
Whistleblowers ,
White Collar Crimes
On May 9, 2024, the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced a new Task Force on Health Care Monopolies and Collusions (HCMC). Comprised of civil and criminal prosecutors, economists, healthcare...more
5/22/2024
/ Acquisitions ,
Analytics ,
Antitrust Division ,
Books & Records ,
Collusion ,
Competition ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Priorities ,
Health Care Providers ,
Mergers ,
Monopolization ,
Risk Management ,
Safe Harbors ,
Voluntary Disclosure
Last week, senior Department of Justice leadership announced new policies and programs intended to further its “carrot and sticks” approach to corporate criminal enforcement, which has borne fruit with twice as many voluntary...more
3/14/2024
/ Artificial Intelligence ,
CFTC ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Crimes ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
FinCEN ,
Pilot Programs ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Whistleblower Awards ,
Whistleblowers ,
White Collar Crimes
On December 14, 2023, the United States House and Senate passed the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which included the Foreign Extortion Prevention Act (FEPA). This bipartisan legislation, which Senator Sheldon...more
As previously reported, the Department of Justice (DOJ) has announced comprehensive corporate criminal enforcement policy changes utilizing both “carrots” and “sticks” to encourage companies to voluntarily self-disclose...more
Over the last two years, the Department of Justice (DOJ) has announced numerous policy changes on corporate criminal enforcement policies, which were largely based on a self-described “carrot and sticks” approach (“a mix of...more
10/6/2023
/ Acquisitions ,
Antitrust Division ,
Compliance ,
Cooperation ,
Corporate Crimes ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Declination ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement ,
Mergers ,
Policy Statement ,
Safe Harbors ,
Voluntary Disclosure
Two recent Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) actions – a Department of Justice (DOJ) Opinion letter and an SEC settlement – underscore key diligence questions that legal and compliance departments should address when...more
9/11/2023
/ Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Disgorgement ,
Federal Contractors ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Foreign Official ,
Meal and Entertainment Expenditures ,
New Regulations ,
Opinion Letter ,
Pre-Judgment Interest ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Violations ,
Travel Expenses
Recently, Womble Bond Dickinson held its First Annual Health Care Fraud Symposium, a webinar designed to discuss critical healthcare fraud topics. WBD Partner Joe Whitley moderated a discussion with WBD attorneys Luke Cass,...more
4/13/2023
/ Antitrust Investigations ,
Antitrust Provisions ,
Compliance ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement ,
Enforcement Priorities ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Federal Sentencing Guidelines ,
Fraud ,
Genetic Testing ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare Fraud ,
Kickbacks ,
Law Enforcement ,
Regulatory Agencies ,
Safe Harbors ,
Telehealth ,
White Collar Crimes
On February 22, 2023, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced and implemented a new Voluntary Self-Disclosure Policy specific to the 93 United States Attorney’s Offices (USAOs) throughout the nation. Before...more
The Monaco memo’s imposition of CCO certification in DOJ investigations has, reasonably, been a major anxiety-inducer for compliance professionals. And while DOJ officials have said the requirement is designed to “empower”...more
Health Care fraud is a growing national issue. The National Heath Care Anti-Fraud Association estimates that health care fraud costs the nation about $68 billion annually — about 3 percent of the nation's $2.26 trillion in...more
2/22/2023
/ Antitrust Division ,
C-Suite Executives ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Civil Investigation Demand ,
Continuing Legal Education ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Enforcement Priorities ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health Clinics ,
Healthcare Facilities ,
Healthcare Fraud ,
Hospitals ,
Laboratories ,
OIG ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Pharmacies ,
Pharmacist ,
Physicians ,
Popular ,
Skilled Nursing Facility ,
Subpoenas ,
Training ,
Webinars
On January 17, the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice announced that it had obtained another in a recent string of guilty pleas as a result of investigations into government contracting by the Procurement...more
1/20/2023
/ Antitrust Division ,
Antitrust Violations ,
Bid Rigging ,
Biden Administration ,
Criminal Convictions ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
DOJ Strike Force ,
Ethics ,
Executive Orders ,
FBI ,
Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Federal Procurement Systems ,
Suspensions & Debarments
The Department of Justice (DOJ) has been touting revisions to its corporate criminal enforcement policies and signaling increased action for nearly a year. Yesterday, Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco formally announced...more
9/19/2022
/ Compliance ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Corporate Culture ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Priorities ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Individual Accountability ,
Personal Liability ,
Voluntary Disclosure ,
White Collar Crimes
On March 3, 2022, at the 37th Annual American Bar Association Criminal Justice Section National Institute on White Collar Crime in San Francisco, Attorney General Merrick B. Garland emphasized that “the prosecution of...more
3/11/2022
/ Antitrust Violations ,
CARES Act ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
CFTC ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Priorities ,
Environmental Crimes ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
IRS ,
Merrick Garland ,
Personal Liability ,
Securities Fraud ,
White Collar Crimes
At the 36th Annual American Bar Association National Institute on White Collar Conference on October 28, 2021, Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco announced significant changes to Department of Justice policies on corporate...more
Takeaways:
..In recent remarks, top DOJ officials stated that DOJ will “surge resources” and “redouble efforts” for corporate enforcement.
..Areas of particular concern include Foreign Corrupt Practices Act,...more
11/4/2021
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Benchmark Pricing ,
Biden Administration ,
Chief Compliance Officers ,
Compliance ,
Cooperation ,
Cybersecurity ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Energy Sector ,
Enforcement ,
Federal Contractors ,
Financial Fraud ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Fraud ,
Government Investigations ,
Price Manipulation ,
White Collar Crimes
Investigators with the U.S. Department of Justice reportedly are investigating energy pricing benchmarks published by Platts, targeting suspected manipulation of deal prices provided by individual traders.
According to...more
10/6/2021
/ Benchmark Pricing ,
Commodities Traders ,
Compliance ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Fraud ,
Government Investigations ,
Libor ,
Market Manipulation ,
Oil Prices ,
Price Manipulation ,
Racketeering ,
Risk Management ,
S&P ,
Traders