Recently, the Justice Department unsealed an indictment charging Jose Carlos Grubisich, the former CEO of Braskem S.A. with participating in an FCPA conspiracy with Odebrecht S.A. Grubisisch was arrested last Wednesday. ...more
12/6/2019
/ Bribery ,
Construction Project ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Criminal Penalties ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Disgorgement ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Government Officials ,
Indictments ,
Money Laundering ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
White Collar Crimes
The Justice Department won another FCPA trial. After a three-week trial, Mark Lambert of Mount Airy, Maryland, was found guilty of four counts of violating the FCPA, two counts of wire fraud and one count of conspiracy to...more
11/27/2019
/ Bribery ,
Criminal Conspiracy ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Deferred Prosecution Agreements ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Guilty Pleas ,
Money Laundering ,
Russia ,
Uranium ,
White Collar Crimes ,
Wire Fraud
The Justice Department has been very busy in FCPA enforcement matters -- (1) Samsung Heavy Industries paid $75 million to settle FCPA violations; (2) Braskem's former CEO was indicted on FCPA charges; and (3) after a...more
11/24/2019
/ Bribery ,
CEOs ,
Criminal Conspiracy ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Deferred Prosecution Agreements ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Indictments ,
Money Laundering ,
Samsung ,
Settlement Agreements ,
White Collar Crimes
Last week, DOJ announced the indictment of two former Herbalife executives in China for participating in a bribery scheme over a ten-year period.
Herbalife, a multi-level marketing company, was not charged and its...more
11/18/2019
/ Bribery ,
Business Licenses ,
China ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Conspiracy ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Destruction of Evidence ,
Dietary Supplements ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Evidence ,
Failure to Comply ,
False Statements ,
Family Members ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Government Officials ,
Herbalife ,
Indictments ,
Internships ,
Investment Fraud ,
Meals-Gifts-and Entertainment Rules ,
MLM Industry ,
MOFCOM ,
Perjury ,
Regulatory Violations ,
Reimbursements ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
White Collar Crimes
Lawrence Hoskins, a UK citizen and former Alstom executive, was convicted last Friday on 11 of 12 counts for his role in a bribery scheme involving Indonesian officials....more
11/15/2019
/ Alstom ,
Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Conspiracy ,
Criminal Convictions ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Guilty Pleas ,
Indonesia ,
Money Laundering ,
White Collar Crimes
The Justice Department and the SEC have launched criminal and civil accounting fraud investigations against Under Armour. The sportswear maker has been suffering a rapid revenue decline over the last few years....more
11/12/2019
/ Accounting Fraud ,
Books & Records ,
Corporate Culture ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Fashion Industry ,
Popular ,
Quarterly Report ,
Reputation Management ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
White Collar Crimes
Lawrence Hoskins, a UK citizen and former Alstom executive, was convicted last Friday on 11 of 12 counts for his role in a bribery scheme involving Indonesian officials. Hoskins conviction took years to secure because of...more
11/10/2019
/ Appeals ,
Bribery ,
Criminal Conspiracy ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Foreign Official ,
Government Officials ,
Guilty Pleas ,
Indictments ,
Jurisdiction ,
Jury Trial ,
Jury Verdicts ,
Money Laundering ,
Subsidiaries
The Justice Department, in coordination with HHS-OIG and the FBI recently announced the arrest and prosecution of 35 individuals for a massive genetic testing fraud scheme involving dozens of telemedicine companies and cancer...more
10/25/2019
/ Cancer ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Clinical Laboratory Testing ,
Compliance ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
False Billing ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
FBI ,
Genetic Testing ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Fraud ,
Kickbacks ,
Medicare ,
OIG ,
Physicians ,
Telemedicine
Just to repeat myself – pharmaceutical and medical device firms face extraordinary risks of enforcement under the False Claims Act. While everyone likes to write and focus on FCPA or anti-corruption risks for global drug and...more
10/23/2019
/ Anti-Kickback Statute ,
Compliance ,
Cooperation ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Corporate Integrity Agreement ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Conspiracy ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Deferred Prosecution Agreements ,
Dementia ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Fraudulent Marketing ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare Fraud ,
Internal Controls ,
Kickbacks ,
Long Term Care Facilities ,
Medical Devices ,
OIG ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Physicians ,
Popular ,
Prescription Drug Coverage ,
Prescription Drugs ,
Qui Tam ,
Whistleblowers ,
White Collar Crimes
Microsoft finally resolved its FCPA enforcement action with a whimper. Notwithstanding prior suggestions that Microsoft’s investigation uncovered global conduct, Microsoft’s liability focused primarily on Microsoft’s conduct...more
7/25/2019
/ Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Federal Sentencing Guidelines ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Internal Controls ,
Microsoft ,
Non-Prosecution Agreements ,
Regulatory Violations ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Technology Sector ,
White Collar Crimes
In yet another major compliance development, the Justice Department announced the adoption of a new policy to credit effective compliance programs in resolving criminal cartel prosecutions against corporations....more
7/16/2019
/ Antitrust Division ,
Antitrust Provisions ,
Antitrust Violations ,
Cartels ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Culture ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Leniency Programs ,
White Collar Crimes
Sometimes what folks label a “new idea” is not so much of a new idea as the application of an old solution to a new discipline. I do not mean to be cryptic, but I am going to explain my point by referring to an area where I...more
6/21/2019
/ Analytics ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Culture ,
Corporate Monitoring ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Data Management ,
FBI ,
Innovative Technology ,
Internal Controls ,
Law Enforcement ,
White Collar Crimes
Part 1 of the Corporate Compliance Guidance addresses the following elements of a well-designed compliance program: risk assessment, policies and procedures, training and communications, confidential reporting structure and...more
5/3/2019
/ Best Practices ,
Chief Compliance Officers ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Corporate Culture ,
Corporate Officers ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Ethics ,
New Guidance ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Risk Assessment ,
Senior Managers
The Justice Department and the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Asset Control (OFAC) are on a roll. Global banks are facing renewed prosecutions, along with aggressive sanctions prosecutions of companies for...more
4/25/2019
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Banking Sector ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Export Controls ,
Failure to Comply ,
Guilty Pleas ,
International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) ,
Iran Sanctions ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Sanction Violations ,
Settlement Agreements ,
White Collar Crimes
For criminal defense practitioners, it is easy to lose perspective when focused on FCPA, export control/sanctions and AML prosecutions. In the healthcare fraud area, prosecutors continue to aggressively enforce anti-kickback...more
In a shocking announcement, federal prosecutors announced the arrest and charges against numerous individuals in connection with a nationwide criminal investigation focusing on college entrance exam cheating and admission of...more
3/20/2019
/ Bribery ,
College Admissions ,
Colleges ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Conspiracy ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Educational Institutions ,
Fraud and Abuse ,
Recruitment Policies ,
Universities ,
White Collar Crimes
The MTS FCPA enforcement action stands as one of several significant prosecutions in FCPA history. The breadth and depth of MTS’ corruption scheme stands as another example of systemic bribery cultures. The details of the...more
3/14/2019
/ Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Culture ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Foreign Official ,
Internal Controls ,
Money Laundering ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Telecommunications ,
Uzbekistan ,
VimpelCom ,
White Collar Crimes
The MTS bribery scandal in Uzbekistan represents the culmination of several significant FCPA violations involving VimpelCom, Telia Sonera, MTS, and Gulnara Karimova, the notoriously corrupt daughter of the former Uzbek...more
3/13/2019
/ Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Foreign Official ,
Money Laundering ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Telecommunications ,
Uzbekistan ,
VimpelCom ,
White Collar Crimes
The Department of Justice has launched two separate criminal cases against Huawei China, the controversial Chinese telecommunications equipment provider. ...more
3/5/2019
/ China ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Extradition ,
Huawei ,
Indictments ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Iran Sanctions ,
Obstruction of Justice ,
Sanction Violations ,
T-Mobile ,
Telecommunications ,
Trade Secrets ,
White Collar Crimes ,
Wire Fraud
In the first corporate FCPA action of 2019, Cognizant Technology Solutions Company settled its long-running FCPA case, agreeing to pay the SEC $25 million....more
2/18/2019
/ Books & Records ,
Bribery ,
Construction Industry ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Declination ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
FCPA Corporate Enforcement Policy (CEP) ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Indictments ,
Regulatory Violations ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Settlement Agreements ,
White Collar Crimes
In January 2019, the US Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan returned an indictment against four executives from Audi, a Volkswagen subsidiary, for their participation and direction of Audi’s emissions-cheating...more
2/13/2019
/ Audi ,
Automotive Industry ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Culture ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Conspiracy ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Ethics Breach ,
Indictments ,
National Emissions Standards ,
Volkswagen ,
White Collar Crimes
In a stark message, Justice Department prosecutors have brought the first criminal case for anti-money laundering violations against a broker-dealer. ...more
1/30/2019
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Customer Identification Program (CIP) ,
Deferred Prosecution Agreements ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Failure to Comply ,
Payday Loans ,
Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) ,
Tribal Loans ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices ,
Usury ,
White Collar Crimes
Businesses understand that their trade secrets are valuable assets. However, businesses fail to understand how vulnerable their trade secrets are to misappropriation and straight-out theft....more
On December 19, 2018, the SEC announced settlements with two former senior executives of Panasonic Avionics Corporation.
In April 2018, Panasonic Avionics settled FCPA charges with the Justice Department and the SEC and...more
1/11/2019
/ Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Internal Controls ,
Panasonic ,
Popular ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Settlement ,
White Collar Crimes
Here we go – another year, another set of predictions. Who knows whether they will come true?
Actually, I went back and read my annual prediction posting for 2018 and 2017, respectively. Some things I called correctly, and...more
1/4/2019
/ Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Corporate Monitoring ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Ericsson ,
FCPA Corporate Enforcement Policy (CEP) ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Fresenius ,
Goldman Sachs ,
Microsoft ,
White Collar Crimes