Enforcement of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and other global anti-bribery regulations is rising, compliance experts said. Companies may still risk violating anti-bribery laws even while working remotely during the pandemic and should make sure their compliance procedures are being followed, they said.
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Although enforcement of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act this year is off to its slowest start in a decade (see 2105050018), industry should expect FCPA penalties to pick up as more Justice Department officials are appointed and the Biden administration follows through on its commitment to combat corruption, lawyers said. They also said the administration will work more closely with allies and within the interagency, which should continue a trend of rising FCPA enforcement.
International trade lawyer Matt Lapin joined Porter Wright as a partner in the firm's Washington office, according to a June 28 press release. Lapin, previously with Torres Law, brings with him experience on export controls and international trade law, including compliance efforts with the International Traffic in Arms Regulations and Export Administration Regulations. He also advises on the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and other domestic and international anti-bribery laws.
Amec Foster Wheeler Energy Ltd., a subsidiary of United Kingdom-based engineering company John Wood Group, agreed to pay a penalty of more than $18 million to settle charges that it paid bribes to foreign officials in Brazil in exchange for a $190 million contract to design a gas-to-chemicals complex, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of New York said in a June 25 news release. Amec Foster Wheeler was charged with conspiracy to violate the anti-bribery portions of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, the release said. The company entered into a three-year deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) to resolve the charges, the release said. From 2011 to 2014, Amec Foster Wheeler conspired with other parties, including an Italian sales agent, to pay bribes to Brazilian state-owned oil company officials to win the high-priced contract.
Two former Chadian diplomats posted to the U.S. were charged with bribery and money laundering after allegedly accepting a $2 million bribe from a Canadian energy company in exchange for obtaining oil rights in the African nation. Mahamoud Bechir and Youssouf Takane took the bribe and conspired to launder it while serving as diplomats in Chad's Embassy in Washington, 2009 to 2014, the Department of Justice said in a May 24 news release. The diplomats allegedly pledged to leverage their influence in Chad to secure the energy company the oil rights. The president of the Canadian company, Naeem Tyab, pleaded guilty to violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.
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Seth DuCharme, previously the acting U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of New York and principal associate deputy attorney general of the U.S., joined Bracewell as a partner in its government enforcement and investigations practice, the firm said in a May 10 news release. “DuCharme will focus his practice at Bracewell on advising companies and individuals on matters related to cybersecurity and breach response, Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) diligence and litigation, export controls, sanctions compliance and anti-money laundering,” the firm said.
Two companies weren’t penalized after disclosing potential export control and Foreign Corrupt Practices Act violations to U.S. agencies, according to recent Securities and Exchange Commission filings. A10 Networks Inc., a software and hardware manufacturing company, said in its April 30 filing it received a warning letter from the Bureau of Industry and Security “in lieu of fines and penalties” after voluntarily disclosing potential illegal exports of encryption products (see 2011040041). Pactiv Evergreen, a North American food and beverage packaging company, said in its May 6 filing it disclosed potential FCPA violations to the Justice Department (see 2103040065), but the agency “decided to close its file on this matter without any action against the Company.” Pactiv said it’s awaiting a potential penalty decision from the SEC and can’t predict whether it will be fined.
The U.S. announced just one enforcement action under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act through the first four months of this year (see 2101120021), the slowest start in FCPA enforcement in at least a decade, a May 3 FCPA Blog post said. The U.S. averaged about four or five corporate FCPA enforcement actions through the first four months of 2012 through 2020, the blog said. Some “high-level personnel changes” due to the White House transition may be contributing to the slow-down, it said. The FCPA units at the Justice Department and Securities and Exchange Commission “are likely waiting for the dust to settle,” the blog said. “New leaders bring new agendas and priorities, and pending actions need fresh reviews.” DOJ didn’t comment.