The past few weeks have not been kind to 3M. The company recently settled with the SEC for $6.5 million to resolve alleged FCPA violations related to its Chinese subsidiary’s dealings with Chinese state-owned healthcare...more
9/28/2023
/ Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Foreign Policy ,
General Licenses ,
Iran ,
Iran Sanctions ,
Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Popular ,
Sanction Violations ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Settlement ,
White Collar Crimes
The Justice Department has touted the upcoming wave of corporate prosecutions for criminal sanctions violation as the era of “The New FCPA.” DOJ’s reference is intended to communicate a strong message – companies are going to...more
9/12/2023
/ Compliance ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Foreign Policy ,
Foreign Relations ,
Foreign Subsidiaries ,
Goods or Services ,
International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) ,
Iran ,
Iran Sanctions ,
Sanction Violations
The Justice Department’s Opinion Release procedure has provided important guidance over the years. The library of Opinion Release letters is well-organized and accessible to the legal and compliance community....more
The SEC is having a good year in prosecuting FCPA cases. The SEC’s recent settlement with 3M Corp. for $6.5 million is its seventh corporate resolution for the year. DOJ, which has been relatively quiet so far this year,...more
8/29/2023
/ 3M Company ,
Anti-Corruption ,
China ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Regulatory Violations ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
White Collar Crimes
You can always learn a lot from reviewing the underlying conduct to an FCPA enforcement action. Chief compliance officers can identify specific risk factors, mitigation steps and root causes for bribery schemes.
...more
8/16/2023
/ Books & Records ,
Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Foreign Governments ,
Odebrecht ,
Public Projects ,
Risk Mitigation ,
Settlement ,
White Collar Crimes
The Department of Justice has been relatively quiet this year in bringing corporate FCPA enforcement actions and settlements. Aside from the Ericsson breach of its Deferred Prosecution Agreement, the Corficocolombiana...more
8/15/2023
/ Bribery ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Governance ,
Corruption ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
FCPA Corporate Enforcement Policy (CEP) ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Regulatory Violations ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
White Collar Crimes
The SEC has been racking up several FCPA enforcement actions. DOJ appears to be declining many of these cases. The division of enforcement appeared to follow a pattern – on larger cases with more pervasive violations, DOJ...more
After a long-running investigation, Koninklijke Philips (“Philips), a Dutch company, resolved FCPA violations in China by agreeing to pay the SEC $62 million. Philips is a global manufacturer of medical equipment....more
Let’s move beyond the headline – trade compliance is the new FCPA. We get it. The next step is to do something about it. The Justice Department has repeated this refrain – it is one of its greatest hits. In addition, DOJ,...more
5/17/2023
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Compliance ,
Compliance Management Systems ,
Corporate Governance ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Corruption ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
FCPA Guidance ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Internal Controls ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Risk Assessment ,
White Collar Crimes
To restate the obvious – DOJ has prioritized prosecution of national security crimes. For the business world, every company touches the international economy. Even a domestic company might sell products or services outside...more
Franks International (“Frank’s”) settled FCPA charges with the SEC for $8 million stemming from operations in Angola during the period 2008 to 2014. The Justice Department declined to prosecute Frank’s for the same events....more
5/11/2023
/ Angola ,
Anti-Corruption ,
Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Natural Gas ,
Oil & Gas ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
White Collar Crimes
Rio Tinto, the global mining and metals company, agreed to pay the SEC $15 million to settle FCPA violations arising from an alleged bribery scheme involving a senior Guinean government official....more
Flutter Entertainment, the previous owner of PokerStars, agreed to pay the Securities and Exchange Commission $4 million for improper payments to Russian-based consultants, stemming from conduct committed by The Stars Group,...more
3/28/2023
/ Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Due Diligence ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Acquisitions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Online Gaming ,
Russia ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Sports Betting ,
White Collar Crimes
The Justice Department has been pushing its voluntary self-disclosure program and changes to its Corporate Enforcement Policy, in an attempt to increase FCPA enforcement cooperation. The Golden Ring for every company facing...more
3/23/2023
/ Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Disgorgement ,
Enforcement Guidance ,
FCPA Corporate Enforcement Policy (CEP) ,
FCPA Guidance ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Voluntary Disclosure ,
White Collar Crimes
The end of the road for Roger Ng, the Goldman Sachs Investment Banker, who played a critical role in the Goldman Sachs 1 MDB Malaysia scandal, was not a pretty one. District Judge Margo Brodie gave Ng a severe sentence of...more
3/16/2023
/ 1MDB ,
Bonds ,
Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Goldman Sachs ,
Malaysia ,
Money Laundering ,
Sovereign Wealth Funds ,
White Collar Crimes
This is not your typical FCPA enforcement action Lessons Learned column. Instead, Ericsson’s breach of its DPA presents a laundry list of internal investigation errors – as a practitioner in this area, this is the nightmare...more
3/9/2023
/ Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Culture ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Deferred Prosecution Agreements ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Document Management ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Ericsson ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Internal Investigations ,
Telecommunications ,
White Collar Crimes
Ericsson, a multinational telecommunications company, based in Sweden, settled its breach of its 2019 Deferred Prosecution Agreement, agreed to enter a guilty plea and pay a $206 million penalty. In 2019, Ericsson entered...more
3/7/2023
/ Anti-Bribery ,
Anti-Corruption ,
Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Deferred Prosecution Agreements ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Ericsson ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Guilty Pleas ,
Iraq ,
ISIS ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Telecommunications ,
White Collar Crimes
In a recent decision, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals handed the U.S. Justice Department a victory in reversing an “out-of-whack” trial judge’s dismissal of two separate criminal indictments that were consolidated on...more
2/22/2023
/ Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Extraterritoriality Rules ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Indictments ,
Money Laundering ,
White Collar Crimes
In its first enforcement action of 2023, the Justice Department charged a Connecticut man and a foreign national with FCPA bribery and money laundering charges stemming from a bribery scheme to secure contracts with Petrobras...more
2/21/2023
/ Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Money Laundering ,
Oil & Gas ,
Petrobras ,
Popular ,
White Collar Crimes
The Justice Department has taken steps to implement its new compliance compensation requirement announced in its Corporate Enforcement Policy revisions. With little fanfare, the Danske Bank $2 billion settlement with the...more
The SEC knows that it has powerful enforcement tools. The FCPA imposes two important requirements on issuers – keep accurate books and records and maintain internal controls to ensure that management’s accounting controls...more
Here are some basic propositions that surround FCPA compliance. It is often underplayed that the FCPA contains more than just a bribery prohibition – the FCPA contains broad provisions, requiring accurate books and records...more
2/8/2023
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Corruption ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Ethics ,
FCPA Guidance ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Internal Controls ,
White Collar Crimes
The Department of Justice announced revisions to its Corporate Enforcement Policy (“CEP”) yet again in order to promote voluntary disclosures by Companies that discover potential wrongdoing. DOJ’s latest action demonstrated...more
Trade compliance is the new hot field. Companies are catching up with trade compliance in response to the global sanctions regimes put in place to cripple Russia. The United States, its allies and partners have implemented...more
1/24/2023
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Military Conflict ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Russia ,
Trade Relations ,
Ukraine ,
US Trade Policies
DOJ closed out its FCPA enforcement year in 2022 with two significant settlements, the ABB and Honeywell cases. Aside from these two big settlements, there was a flurry of other actions in the last quarter of 2022....more
1/13/2023
/ Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Declination ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Disgorgement ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Ericsson ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Government Officials ,
Guilty Pleas ,
Money Laundering ,
White Collar Crimes