LRN’s latest report was based on a survey of more than 1,400 ethics and compliance professionals, most of whom were employed at organizations with at least 1000 employees in 19 different countries and 26 industries across...more
The Department of Justice’s blockbuster FCPA settlement with Gunvor restores the credibility of DOJ’s pronouncements of DOJ’s commitment to aggressive FCPA enforcement. While I have questioned DOJ’s commitment to its...more
3/21/2024
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Bribery ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Settlement ,
White Collar Crimes
Gunvor’s bribery scheme is not very surprising nor ingenious. After all, a number of energy trading companies have been prosecuted for bribery over the years, including Glencore, Vitol, Freepoint. Numerous individuals have...more
You have to give the Justice Department credit — after two slow enforcement years, DOJ is starting off 2024 with a relative “bang;” first, DOJ reached a large settlement with SAP in January, and now, DOJ has reached a...more
3/19/2024
/ Bribery ,
Commodities Traders ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Conspiracy ,
Criminal Penalties ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Guilty Pleas ,
Money Laundering ,
Statutory Violations ,
White Collar Crimes
In the face of rapid technology changes, the Department of Justice usually has to play catch up. When cryptocurrency and blockchain entered the United States economy, the Justice Department played catch up. Fraudsters and...more
Boeing continues to struggle. As troubles mount for Boeing, it is clear that it suffers from real and pervasive culture issues that have been reflected in serious safety failures, financial difficulties, regulatory...more
3/6/2024
/ Aviation Industry ,
Boeing ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Corporate Culture ,
Corruption ,
Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC) ,
Ethics ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
ITAR ,
Regulatory Violations ,
Settlement ,
US Department of State
When it comes to FCPA enforcement, the Justice Department’s global focus for many years was on Asian countries, and in particular, China. This trend, however, has continued, but in the past few years, DOJ has brought a...more
In a unanimous ruling, the Supreme Court reaffirmed the whistleblower protections of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act in the case, Murray v. UBS Securities, LLC et al. (February 8, 2024). The Supreme Court’s decision reaffirms an...more
2/21/2024
/ Adverse Employment Action ,
Anti-Retaliation Provisions ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Murray v UBS Securities LLC ,
Protected Activity ,
Retaliation ,
Sarbanes-Oxley ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities Fraud ,
Securities Violations ,
UBS ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies ,
Whistleblowers ,
White Collar Crimes
The past two years brought heightened scrutiny to supply chain risks and human rights violations, and time is running out to ensure your organization is compliant with the recent regulation updates and policy...more
2/19/2024
/ Business Operations ,
Due Diligence ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
EU ,
Human Rights ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Risk Management ,
Supply Chain ,
Sustainability ,
Transparency ,
Webinars
If companies operated with perfect governance mechanisms and controls, they would all be ready for the coming sanctions enforcement storm. However, that is not the corporate reality. Even after several companies are the...more
2/16/2024
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Foreign Policy ,
National Security ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Supply Chain ,
White Collar Crimes
There are some things you learn best in calm, and some in storm.
Willa Cather I know I sound like a broken record. The Justice Department’s white collar criminal enforcement has been trending down over the last few...more
2/14/2024
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Liability ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
White Collar Crimes
The technology revolution and the rise of information and data permeates every aspect of our economy and daily lives. It is not surprising then that the Department of Justice and other law enforcement agencies are embracing...more
When it comes to data privacy and regulation of personal information, United States companies face a number of major challenges. Compliance is not easy when you have fast-moving targets. The single biggest cause of this...more
2/6/2024
/ Compliance ,
Consumer Privacy Rights ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Collection ,
Data Management ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Protection ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Information Governance ,
Information Technology ,
Personal Data ,
Personally Identifiable Information ,
Section 5 ,
State Data Breach Notification Statutes
A Top 5 list should be viewed with suspicion — it is often just a headline grabbing posting with the clear purpose to gain readers’ attention. In defense, however, it is interesting to compare articles on risk rankings....more
1/30/2024
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
Board of Directors ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Governance ,
Cybersecurity ,
Diversity and Inclusion Standards (D&I) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Foreign Relations ,
Risk Management
I always enjoy retrospective “year in review” postings to start off the new year. For years, I have sought to identify and capture important compliance trends, typically focused on specific professionals in the compliance...more
As always, I tend to repeat myself. However, one important point needs to be repeated — DOJ is in the midst of launching an aggressive sanctions and export control program against corporations and individuals. DOJ has...more
1/23/2024
/ Corruption ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Export Controls ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Foreign Policy ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Popular ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
White Collar Crimes
A careful reading of the DOJ and SEC settlement documents for the SAP case will puzzle you. I know I am scratching my head trying to make sense of the whole picture here. There are a number of significant indicators of a...more
When it comes to FCPA enforcement and expectations, DOJ has moved the goalposts. Some would argue that DOJ has been consistent all along. The truth, like most issues, lies somewhere between the extremes....more
1/17/2024
/ Anti-Bribery ,
Anti-Corruption ,
Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
FCPA Corporate Enforcement Policy (CEP) ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
SAP America Inc. ,
White Collar Crimes
Life is always filled with surprises. Just when we thought 2023 was a “slow” FCPA enforcement year, DOJ and SEC announced a large enforcement action against SAP for approximately $220 million for FCPA violations in South...more
1/16/2024
/ Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Deferred Prosecution Agreements ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Popular ,
Sanction Violations ,
SAP America Inc. ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
White Collar Crimes
The Justice Department’s FCPA enforcement record for 2024 was slow. This trend was unexpected, contrary to my own predictions and of various other prognosticators. It is hard to explain why this slowdown occurred....more
1/12/2024
/ Anti-Bribery ,
Anti-Corruption ,
Bribery ,
CFTC ,
Commodities ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
FCPA Corporate Enforcement Policy (CEP) ,
Federal Sentencing Guidelines ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Petrobras ,
Settlement ,
White Collar Crimes
While 2023 was a relatively slow year in FCPA enforcement, the DOJ and SEC settlements announced throughout the year set out a list of important ethics and compliance reminders. While these may seem obvious to everyone, I...more
1/11/2024
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Corruption ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
FCPA Guidance ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Regulatory Violations ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
White Collar Crimes
FCPA trends often are relatively easy to describe and often overblown as a marketing technique by the usual cast of paparazzi suspects. (Self-proclaimed prognosticators that often push incorrect themes to promote business,...more
Within the specific element discussions in HHS-OIG’s Guidance, are important operational details and strategies for an effective compliance program. GCPG provides important suggestions and innovations for consideration by...more
Board Oversight of the Compliance Program -
The GCPG cross-references the US Sentencing Guidelines board responsibility requirements of the organization’s compliance program, and provides that the board shall “be...more
12/22/2023
/ Code of Conduct ,
Compliance ,
Cooperative Compliance Regime ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Duty of Oversight ,
Ethics ,
Federal Sentencing Guidelines ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare ,
OIG ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Training
The health care industry has a rich history of commitment and innovation in developing effective compliance programs. Going back to the 1990s, HHS elevated compliance program requirements for healthcare companies. Many of...more
12/20/2023
/ Anti-Kickback Statute ,
Compliance ,
Compliance Management Systems ,
Corporate Integrity Agreement ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Fraud ,
OIG ,
Self-Referral ,
Stark Law