The SEC’s recent settlement with Deere & Company for $9.9 million for FCPA violations is another textbook example of bribery schemes, which revealed the absence of a culture of compliance, and the circumvention of basic...more
The Justice Department is encouraging companies to voluntarily disclose criminal violations — “Come in and confess” and DOJ offers promises of a declination. But even a declination comes with a requirement — the company has...more
9/4/2024
/ Angola ,
Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Disgorgement ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Fines ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Popular ,
Voluntary Disclosure ,
White Collar Crimes
While FCPA enforcement against companies has been relatively quiet this year, despite a strong beginning to the year — the SAP case for $220 million; and the Gunvor case for $661 million — DOJ has been pushing a number of...more
DOJ is feeling the heat. Corporate criminal enforcement numbers are down. in fairness, DOJ has been pushing individual criminal enforcement as an effective deterrent to corporate misconduct. Criminal prosecutions, when done...more
8/20/2024
/ Compliance ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Federal Pilot Programs ,
Fraud ,
Money Laundering ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies ,
White Collar Crimes
Boeing’s Plea Agreement includes two Separate Factual Statements — the January 7, 2021 DPA, which is discussed in a prior blog post, and a factual outline of Boeing’s breach of the original DPA, resulting in the current Plea...more
8/1/2024
/ Aircraft ,
Airplane Accidents ,
Anti-Fraud Provisions ,
Aviation Industry ,
Boeing ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Culture ,
Corruption ,
Deferred Prosecution Agreements ,
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) ,
Internal Controls ,
White Collar Crimes
Listen to this conversation between Michael Volkov and Halyna Senyk in which they focus on Ukraine's anti-corruption efforts amidst the backdrop of its ongoing war with Russia. Halyna Senyk, an expert from the CEELI...more
On July 9, 2024, District Judge David Hale in Kentucky denied motions to dismiss and motions to suppress filed by four defendants against a criminal case involving ITAR charges for illegal exports of sensitive,...more
7/18/2024
/ Arms Export Control Act ,
China ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Defense Sector ,
Department of Defense (DOD) ,
DFARS ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
Indictments ,
ITAR ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Motion To Suppress
In its latest report, The 2024 Benchmark of Ethical Culture Report, LRN has focused on the critical issue of corporate culture. LRN is a pacesetter and the leader in reliable studies on complex ethics and compliance issues....more
The increase in internal reporting comes at a critical time when government-sponsored whistleblower programs are maturing and expanding into new agencies. The SEC’s program continues to increase and received a record number...more
As DOJ, OFAC and BIS ramp up sanctions and export controls enforcement, they have continued to provide important compliance guidance. You have to give the enforcement agencies credit — on the one hand, they regularly warn of...more
4/18/2024
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Sanction Violations ,
White Collar Crimes
The Justice Department is rightly trumpeting its successful sweep of the commodities trading industry. DOJ’s success is reflected in its six separate corporate resolutions and 20 individual convictions, resulting in over...more
Trafigura’s bribery scheme resembles the same schemes implemented by its significant competitors — Vitol, Glencore, Gunvor. At the core of the conduct, Petrobras and Brazilian government officials collected bribes in...more
4/10/2024
/ Brazil ,
Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Oil & Gas ,
Petrobras ,
White Collar Crimes
On the heels of the Gunvor FCPA settlement for $661 million, DOJ announced its settlement with Trafigura, the latest commodities trading company to fall under DOJ’s FCPA Sweep against the industry. Trafigura joined the list...more
4/9/2024
/ Bribery ,
Commodities ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Guilty Pleas ,
White Collar Crimes
DOJ has been on a public relations campaign to push a simple message for corporations: if companies learn of misconduct, companies should disclose such misconduct to earn valuable benefits. The quintessential question...more
OFAC is getting ready for a big year. While managing a comprehensive set of sanctions against the Russian Federation in response to its Invasion of Ukraine, OFAC has demonstrated its ability to maintain aggressive...more
The Department of Justice’s blockbuster FCPA settlement with Gunvor restores the credibility of DOJ’s pronouncements of DOJ’s commitment to aggressive FCPA enforcement. While I have questioned DOJ’s commitment to its...more
3/21/2024
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Bribery ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Settlement ,
White Collar Crimes
You have to give the Justice Department credit — after two slow enforcement years, DOJ is starting off 2024 with a relative “bang;” first, DOJ reached a large settlement with SAP in January, and now, DOJ has reached a...more
3/19/2024
/ Bribery ,
Commodities Traders ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Conspiracy ,
Criminal Penalties ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Guilty Pleas ,
Money Laundering ,
Statutory Violations ,
White Collar Crimes
Boeing continues to struggle. As troubles mount for Boeing, it is clear that it suffers from real and pervasive culture issues that have been reflected in serious safety failures, financial difficulties, regulatory...more
3/6/2024
/ Aviation Industry ,
Boeing ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Corporate Culture ,
Corruption ,
Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC) ,
Ethics ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
ITAR ,
Regulatory Violations ,
Settlement ,
US Department of State
When it comes to FCPA enforcement, the Justice Department’s global focus for many years was on Asian countries, and in particular, China. This trend, however, has continued, but in the past few years, DOJ has brought a...more
In a unanimous ruling, the Supreme Court reaffirmed the whistleblower protections of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act in the case, Murray v. UBS Securities, LLC et al. (February 8, 2024). The Supreme Court’s decision reaffirms an...more
2/21/2024
/ Adverse Employment Action ,
Anti-Retaliation Provisions ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Murray v UBS Securities LLC ,
Protected Activity ,
Retaliation ,
Sarbanes-Oxley ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities Fraud ,
Securities Violations ,
UBS ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies ,
Whistleblowers ,
White Collar Crimes
If companies operated with perfect governance mechanisms and controls, they would all be ready for the coming sanctions enforcement storm. However, that is not the corporate reality. Even after several companies are the...more
2/16/2024
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Foreign Policy ,
National Security ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Supply Chain ,
White Collar Crimes
There are some things you learn best in calm, and some in storm.
Willa Cather I know I sound like a broken record. The Justice Department’s white collar criminal enforcement has been trending down over the last few...more
2/14/2024
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Liability ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
White Collar Crimes
As always, I tend to repeat myself. However, one important point needs to be repeated — DOJ is in the midst of launching an aggressive sanctions and export control program against corporations and individuals. DOJ has...more
1/23/2024
/ Corruption ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Export Controls ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Foreign Policy ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Popular ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
White Collar Crimes
When it comes to FCPA enforcement and expectations, DOJ has moved the goalposts. Some would argue that DOJ has been consistent all along. The truth, like most issues, lies somewhere between the extremes....more
1/17/2024
/ Anti-Bribery ,
Anti-Corruption ,
Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
FCPA Corporate Enforcement Policy (CEP) ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
SAP America Inc. ,
White Collar Crimes
The Justice Department’s FCPA enforcement record for 2024 was slow. This trend was unexpected, contrary to my own predictions and of various other prognosticators. It is hard to explain why this slowdown occurred....more
1/12/2024
/ Anti-Bribery ,
Anti-Corruption ,
Bribery ,
CFTC ,
Commodities ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
FCPA Corporate Enforcement Policy (CEP) ,
Federal Sentencing Guidelines ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Petrobras ,
Settlement ,
White Collar Crimes