On 23 October 2012, the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) published its response to the consultation paper on DPAs, and confirmed that it will legislate to introduce DPAs in England and Wales. The Government intends to include an amendment to the Crime and Courts Bill 2012-2013 to introduce DPAs in England and Wales, and it is… Continue Reading
Category Archives: UK Bribery Act
Subscribe to UK Bribery Act RSS FeedThe UK’s Serious Fraud Office (“SFO”) toughens its stance on bribery.
Posted in UK Bribery ActOn the 9 October 2012, the SFO reviewed its policies on facilitation payments, business expenditure (hospitality) and corporate self-reporting. The purpose is to: Restate the SFO’s primary role as an investigator and prosecutor of serious or complex fraud, including corruption; Ensure there is consistency with other UK prosecuting bodies; and Meet certain OECD recommendations. Territorial… Continue Reading
UK BRIBERY ACT FEARS LEAD TO SLOW UP-TAKE OF OLYMPIC HOSPITALITY PACKAGES
Posted in UK Bribery ActLike any other major sporting event, the Olympic Games attracts a large number of corporate sponsors. This summer’s Games in London are no different, with 11 long-term sponsors of the Olympics and a further 40 solely sponsoring the London 2012 Games. But with the London Games looming ever closer into view, sponsors and businesses alike… Continue Reading
New Director of SFO outlines approach for UK Bribery Act
Posted in UK Bribery ActDavid Green took charge as the new Director of the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) on 23 April 2012. Since taking the reins, Mr Green has confirmed that the SFO’s new powers to prosecute bribery offences would remain an important tool in actions overseas. He has however also confirmed that only the largest cases, that prevented… Continue Reading
SECOND CIRCUIT CONFIRMS CONSCIOUS AVOIDANCE TEST
Posted in Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, UK Bribery ActOn Wednesday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit upheld Frederic Bourke’s bribery conviction. This decision is the culmination of investigations and court proceedings that began in 2000. Mr. Bourke, who co-founded handbag maker Dooney & Bourke, was convicted in November 2009 for violations under the FCPA after his business partner Viktor Kozeny… Continue Reading
Six year jail term for first person convicted under the UK Bribery Act
Posted in UK Bribery ActBack in September 2011, we reported on this blog how the first proceedings under the UK Bribery Act 2010 had been commenced against a Court clerk who had accepted money from various people to help them avoid prosecution for motoring offences. Mr Patel, the Court clerk, was charged with requesting and receiving a bribe intending… Continue Reading
Bribery Act 2010: consultation on anti-bribery guidance for transactions published by Transparency International UK
Posted in UK Bribery ActAs pointed out by Squire Sanders & Dempsey’s Capital Markets Practice Review for July 2011, “on 1 July 2011, the day the Bribery Act 2010, came into force, Transparency International UK published a consultation on its draft anti-bribery guidance for transactions. The draft guidance aims to provide practical help for companies wishing to undertake anti-bribery… Continue Reading
London Insurance Broker Settles FSA Action
Posted in Corporate Finance/M&A, UK Bribery ActLast week, one of London’s oldest insurance brokers, Willis Limited (“Willis”), was fined by the UK Financial Services Authority (“FSA”) for failing to counter the risks of bribery and corruption. The £7 million penalty was handed down to Willis in the FSA’s Final Notice (PDF/80.3KB/24 pages) on 21 July 2011. Conduct From 2005 to 2009,… Continue Reading
Tightening Restrictions for US Companies
Posted in Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, UK Bribery ActIt has been interesting to see the reactions around the world to the UK’s new Bribery Act 2010 (“Bribery Act”) which came into force earlier this month. Perhaps unsurprisingly, eyes have been on what the US has made of it given its long history in this area and the application of the Foreign Corrupt Practices… Continue Reading
FIFA, Meet the UK Bribery Act
Posted in UK Bribery ActOur sister blog here are Squire Sanders & Dempsey, Employment Law Worldview, recently published a tremendously informative and entertaining article on the corruption scandal currently surrounding FIFA. It is not so often that the world of sports and entertainment graces the Anticorruption Blog, but this one, “UK Bribery Act – a whole new ball game?”,… Continue Reading
FCPA Inspired Bribery Act To Hit Oil & Gas Industry Hardest
Posted in Oil & Gas, UK Bribery ActThe UK’s Bribery Act, scheduled to come into force on July 1, 2011, will have the most significant impact on the oil and gas industry, according to research by Ernst & Young. Ernst & Young’s findings are based on an analysis of bribery prosecutions under the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) over the last… Continue Reading
Bribery Act 2010: The clock has started ticking
Posted in UK Bribery ActFor further details about the guidance recently published by the Ministry of Justice on the Bribery Act 2010, please read our Review (PDF/369KB). Among other things, the Review contains useful information on: corporate hospitality; facilitation payments; commercial organisations; and associated persons.
Bribery Act 2010: Section 7 Guidance
Posted in UK Bribery ActThe wait is over. The Ministry of Justice (MOJ) has today published the long awaited guidance for commercial organisations on procedures that they can put into place to prevent bribery. The following documents were made available on the MOJ website this morning: Guidance (PDF) on the Bribery Act 2010 (Act); and Quick Start Guide (PDF) on the… Continue Reading
Bribery and Corruption – Is There a Future for Self Reporting and Plea Bargaining?
Posted in UK Bribery ActIn July 2009, the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) issued a document entitled “Approach of the Serious Fraud Office Dealing with Overseas Corruption,” which encourages companies to approach the SFO to self report corruption in exchange for receiving a US-style plea bargain settlement, thus providing the company with certainty of outcome. However, in his white paper,… Continue Reading
Bribery Act 2010: Changing Scope
Posted in UK Bribery ActWhilst we await the coming into force of The Bribery Act 2010 (“Act”) with baited breath, in the meantime, it is interesting to see the attempts to change the scope of the Act. There has also been no shortage of various interest groups calling for a delay in the Act’s implementation to allow them to… Continue Reading
The Bar Speaks Out on the FCPA at the ABA White Collar Conference
Posted in Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, UK Bribery ActIn a recent post we analyzed the comments of Charles Duross, Deputy Chief, Fraud Section, Criminal Division, DOJ, at the ABA White Collar Crime annual conference. Today, we will summarize the comments of Duross’ fellow panelists — Robert Tarun, Mark Mendelsohn and Raphael Monty — all three of whom are in private practice. Tarun stated:… Continue Reading
“2010 Was a Transformative Year”
Posted in Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, UK Bribery ActWith these words Charles Duross, Deputy Chief, Fraud Section, Criminal Division, Department of Justice – the country’s lead criminal prosecutor of FCPA – so began his comments at the recent American Bar Association White Collar Crime annual conference in San Diego, California. Duross characterized 2010 as “transformative” for the following reasons: Fraud Section Changes. Duross… Continue Reading
Update: UK Bribery Act To Go Forward
Posted in UK Bribery ActThe UK government will push forward with the implementation of the UK Bribery Act after the OECD threatened to blacklist British companies if the new law is not enacted soon. See interview with Mark Peith, chairman of the OECD’s working group on bribery, here.
UK Bribery Act Countdown…Delayed…Again?!?
Posted in UK Bribery ActAnd news has finally arrived: Richard Alderman of the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) confirmed today that the implementation of the Bribery Act will be delayed for a second time. The delay is tied to the finalization of the publication of the Adequate Procedures guidance by the Ministry of Justice (MOJ). One has to wonder how… Continue Reading
UK Bribery Act Countdown Continues
Posted in UK Bribery ActThe Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland (ICAS) is on bended knees, urging the UK government to delay the implementation of the UK Bribery Act to July 2011 (instead of April 2011), stating that realistically small and medium sized businesses need more time to reorganize their internal policies and procedures to comply with the Act…. Continue Reading
Panalpina’s Hangover After the Russian Corruption Party
Posted in Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, Oil and Gas, Russia, UK Bribery ActRussia’s hosting a great party–everyone’s invited. Who will be able to survive the hangover from Russia’s samogon (moonshine)? U.S.-based Panalpina, Inc. and its parent Panalpina World Transport (Holding) Ltd., a Swiss freight forwarding company with 10 offices across Russia, were charged with FCPA violations that occurred in Russia. The charges were for both conspiring to… Continue Reading