The Fourth Circuit joined the fast-growing club of federal courts objecting to federal prosecutors and agents reliance on so-called “filter-team” procedures to review documents seized from a law firm that may contain...more
2/20/2020
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Asset Seizure ,
Attorney-Client Privilege ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Document Productions ,
Document Review ,
Michael Cohen ,
Search Warrant ,
White Collar Crimes ,
Work-Product Doctrine
As companies move forward on third-party risk management programs, and as automated third-party risk solutions are being implemented, compliance professionals have to re-examine and re-balance the allocation of resources and...more
Compliance officers face almost an infinite number of risks – not to be trite, but CCOs can drive themselves crazy identifying every plausible legal and compliance risk a company faces. I am exaggerating a little bit to make...more
2/11/2020
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Chief Compliance Officers ,
Compliance ,
Compliance Management Systems ,
Cooperative Compliance Regime ,
Corporate Governance ,
Ethics ,
Internal Controls ,
Policy Management ,
Risk Management ,
Third-Party Risk ,
White Collar Crimes ,
Willful Misconduct
Moving on, 2019 was a big year in OFAC compliance. The Sanctions Compliance Guidance was a major change in sanctions compliance. OFAC has set high expectations for compliance. Whether companies have received and responded to...more
While DOJ had its biggest year in FCPA enforcement, OFAC quietly had a record year in enforcement. OFAC collected approximately $1.28 billion (yes, with a B) in 26 separate enforcement actions. That is quite an increase...more
1/21/2020
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Distributors ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
FCPA Corporate Enforcement Policy (CEP) ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Risk Assessment ,
Russia ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Self-Reporting ,
Suppliers ,
Supply Chain ,
Third-Party Relationships ,
Third-Party Risk ,
Ukraine
The path of the compliance profession has been remarkable. Recently, I have seen a number of tweets and postings from compliance thought leaders touting the accomplishments of compliance and the transformation of the...more
1/17/2020
/ Analytics ,
Anti-Corruption ,
C-Suite Executives ,
Chief Compliance Officers ,
Compliance ,
Compliance Management Systems ,
Compliance Monitoring ,
Corporate Culture ,
Corporate Governance ,
Leadership ,
Risk Management ,
Senior Managers ,
Technology ,
White Collar Crimes
As a passionate supporter of the compliance function, I continue to advocate for compliance officers and the importance of compliance to overall governance. Good compliance means good business – we all know that....more
As everyone knows, I am an eternal optimist. Being a cynic always leads to negative energy and results. As a former federal prosecutor, I am deeply committed to the idea of doing the right thing....more
1/15/2020
/ Anti-Bribery ,
Anti-Corruption ,
Chief Compliance Officers ,
Compliance ,
Compliance Management Systems ,
Compliance Monitoring ,
Corporate Culture ,
Corporate Governance ,
Corporate Management ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Innovative Technology ,
Leadership ,
Risk Management ,
White Collar Crimes
Corporate leaders often talk to the talk when it comes to a Speak Up culture. In theory, many business leaders can articulate their commitment to a Speak Up culture by emphasizing the importance of employees raising...more
1/10/2020
/ Anti-Corruption ,
BP ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Culture ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Corruption ,
Ethics ,
Internal Reporting ,
Oil & Gas ,
Risk Mitigation ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Speak-up Cultures ,
Supervisory Guidance ,
Tone At The Top ,
Whistleblowers ,
White Collar Crimes
It is time to break out the crystal ball for FCPA 2020 Predictions. In preparing for this, I always rely on my past admiration of Carnac the Magnificent....more
1/9/2020
/ 1MDB ,
5G Network ,
Anti-Corruption ,
Brazil ,
China ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Ericsson ,
FCPA Guidance ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
General Electric ,
Goldman Sachs ,
Guilty Pleas ,
Healthcare ,
Malaysia ,
Philips Electronics ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Settlement Agreements ,
Settlement Negotiations ,
Siemens ,
Telecommunications ,
Uzbekistan ,
White Collar Crimes
In a record year, there are bound to be numerous interesting enforcement actions and principles. I picked out a few to highlight....more
1/8/2020
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Bribery ,
Cell Phones ,
Compliance ,
Compliance Management Systems ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Ericsson ,
Ethics ,
FCPA Corporate Enforcement Policy (CEP) ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Fresenius ,
Indictments ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Russia ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Settlement Agreements ,
Telecommunications ,
Wal-Mart ,
White Collar Crimes ,
Wireless Industry
Happy New Year!!
In the FCPA arena, 2019 was a record year – in enforcement and compliance.
Many continuing trends are becoming more than trends – meaning they are turning into established practices....more
1/7/2020
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Compliance Management Systems ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Declination ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Ericsson ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Fresenius ,
Guilty Pleas ,
Indictments ,
Leniency Programs ,
Microsoft ,
Money Laundering ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Popular ,
Retailers ,
Samsung ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Settlement Agreements ,
Settlement Negotiations ,
Telecommunications ,
Transparency ,
Wal-Mart ,
White Collar Crimes ,
Wiretapping
Corporate cultures do not operate in a silo or free from external influences.
Yet again, another profound grasp of the obvious. Employees, managers and senior leadership all bring their own experiences, perspectives,...more
12/12/2019
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Compliance ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
Corporate Culture ,
Corporate Governance ,
Corruption ,
Ethics ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Political Expression ,
Risk Management ,
Tone At The Top
Apollo Aviation Group, now Carlyle Aviation Partners, agreed to pay OFAC $210,600 for 12 violations of the Sudanese Sanctions Program. Carlyle acquired Apollo in December 2018, and Carlyle was not involved in the...more
12/5/2019
/ Aircraft ,
Aircraft Equipment ,
Aircraft Sales ,
Airlines ,
Anti-Corruption ,
Aviation Industry ,
Compliance ,
Contract Terms ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Exports ,
Failure to Comply ,
Foreign Policy ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Release Agreements ,
Sanction Violations ,
SDN List ,
Sudan ,
Ukraine ,
United Arab Emirates (UAE) ,
White Collar Crimes
The Department of Justice recently announced updates to its Foreign Corrupt Practices Act Corporate Enforcement Policy. While the changes were relatively minor, the modifications underscored important principles surrounding...more
12/4/2019
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Enforcement Guidance ,
Evidence ,
FCPA Corporate Enforcement Policy (CEP) ,
FCPA Guidance ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Policy Statement ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Regulatory Violations ,
Self-Disclosure Requirements ,
Transparency ,
Voluntary Disclosure ,
White Collar Crimes
Even the mighty can fall – Apple agreed to pay OFAC $467k for violations of the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Sanctions regulations.
In 2008, Apple entered into an applications development agreement with SIS, a Slovenian...more
12/3/2019
/ Anti-Corruption ,
App Store ,
Apple ,
Compliance Management Systems ,
Corruption ,
Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act ,
Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Sanctions ,
Internal Controls ,
Mobile Apps ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Popular ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Regulatory Violations ,
Sanction Violations ,
Screening Procedures ,
Slovenia ,
Software ,
Transfer of Assets ,
White Collar Crimes
Most compliance programs include some form of internal compliance committee separate from the company’s audit committee. An internal compliance committee can play a very important role in advancing a compliance program....more
Westport Fuel Systems, a Canadian clean fuel technology company, and its former CEO, Nancy Gougarty, agreed to settle FCPA charges with the SEC for $4.1 million and $120k, respectively....more
Last week, British Arab Commercial Bank (BACB), located in the United Kingdom, agreed to settle an OFAC enforcement action for $4 million. ...more
9/25/2019
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Anti-Money Laundering ,
Banking Sector ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Corruption ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Financial Institutions ,
Know Your Customers ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) ,
Sanction Violations ,
Settlement Agreements ,
Sudan ,
UK ,
White Collar Crimes
Corporate boards all want to believe that their companies maintain an ethical culture. Each board members knows the right words, platitudes and buzz words to use. No one can fault them there. But like every issue in life,...more
I guarantee you if you ask your corporate board to define “ethical culture” and “compliance,” and their actual day-to-day responsibilities in this area, you will quickly realize most board members have no clue. ...more
Compliance officers and internal auditors are natural partners and allies in the compliance governance landscape. As the compliance profession and influence grew, compliance officers often leaned on internal auditors for...more
Companies will often rely on a network of distributors to help sell their products in emerging markets. From a business economics standpoint, engaging a distributor is often more cost efficient than investing in a sales...more
As companies elevate their “game” in sanctions compliance, it is important that compliance officers critically examine the strengths and weaknesses of their compliance programs. Many companies already have a screening...more
Based on its aggressive enforcement program and its recently issued Framework for Sanctions Compliance Programs, OFAC has established a new era in sanctions compliance. Trade compliance is often siloed into its own...more