Say what you will – the SEC is making its mark this year in FCPA enforcement. So far, the SEC has brought nine separate enforcement actions, the latest with Bristol-Myers Squibb. I am sure we will see more before the end of...more
10/13/2015
/ Administrative Proceedings ,
Anti-Corruption ,
Bribery ,
Bristol-Myers Squibb ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Ethics ,
Federal Prosecutors ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Popular ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
White Collar Crimes
The SEC’s FCPA enforcement action for $14.6 million against Bristol Meyers Squibb (“BMS”) in China provides a textbook example of how things can go wrong in China.
For the compliance practitioner (as well as CEO and...more
10/12/2015
/ Bribery ,
Bristol-Myers Squibb ,
China ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Culture ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare ,
Meals-Gifts-and Entertainment Rules ,
Medical Devices ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Popular ,
Prescription Drugs ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
White Collar Crimes
The SEC continues to plug away at aggressive FCPA enforcement. This year, at least so far, the SEC has had a very successful year.
The Hitachi case is a very interesting enforcement action for several major reasons. ...more
10/5/2015
/ Administrative Proceedings ,
Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Consent Order ,
Energy Sector ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Hitachi ,
IBM ,
Policy Violations ,
Popular ,
Public Contracts ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Settlement ,
South Africa
The Volkswagen scandal will be studied for years. One of many themes from the Volkswagen scandal will rest on the complete absence of any commitment to corporate governance. Volkswagen’s weird corporate structure (it is owned...more
9/29/2015
/ Automotive Industry ,
C-Suite Executives ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Governance ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Gross Misconduct ,
National Emissions Standards ,
Popular ,
United Airlines ,
Volkswagen
The Department of Justice’s far-reaching criminal investigation into the alleged electronic capacitor cartel has borne fruit – NEC Tokin Corporation agreed to plead guilty and pay a $13.8 million criminal fine for conspiring...more
9/16/2015
/ Auto Parts ,
Brazil ,
Cartels ,
China ,
Criminal Conspiracy ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Electronics ,
Enforcement Actions ,
EU ,
Foreign Suppliers ,
Japan ,
LCD Panels ,
Leniency Programs ,
Popular ,
Price-Fixing ,
South Korea
When DOJ acts, they like to make a splash. While the FCPA Paparazzi have been lamenting the “slow down” in FCPA enforcement actions and the increase in case closings, DOJ still makes its mark when it acts, and I expect more...more
8/25/2015
/ Avon ,
Bribery ,
Cisco ,
Compliance ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Due Diligence ,
Ethics ,
Federal Contractors ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Foreign Official ,
Hewlett-Packard ,
IBM ,
Microsoft ,
Oracle ,
Panama ,
Popular ,
Risk Assessment ,
SAP America Inc. ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Startups ,
State Contracts
The SEC is having a good year in the FCPA enforcement arena. As a former prosecutor, my eyes would sometimes glaze over when discussing civil enforcement actions. The SEC, however, has turned its FCPA enforcement program into...more
8/24/2015
/ Bank of New York (BNY) Mellon ,
Banking Sector ,
Banks ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Financial Institutions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Foreign Nationals ,
Government Officials ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Internships ,
Popular ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Sovereign Wealth Funds ,
Wells Notice
As the compliance profession matures and evolves, the elements of an effective compliance program follow a similar pattern.
Compliance training programs have become more sophisticated over the last five years, as...more
FinCEN has many important responsibilities but one of its more interesting assignments is oversight of anti-money laundering compliance by casinos (and card clubs). Casinos are under increasing scrutiny these days for lax AML...more
7/15/2015
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Bank Secrecy Act ,
BSA/AML ,
Casinos ,
Compliance ,
FinCEN ,
Money Laundering ,
Popular ,
Risk Management ,
SAR ,
Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) ,
Trump Administration
The sprawling Petrobas corruption scandal continues to grow and stretch across Brazil’s political and economic landscape. Prosecutors handling the case continue to reach new targets and arrest more individuals who profited...more
Everyone is talking about the latest corruption scandal, this one with world-wide impact. The scandal engulfed FIFA as seven organization officials were recently arrested in Switzerland. Charges include a range of money...more
I have been writing lately about the rise of OFAC sanctions enforcement. OFAC and the Justice Department have started to build a close working relationship similar to that between the SEC and the Justice Department relating...more
Sometimes a picture is very clear but legal words and concepts are proffered in an attempt to disguise and even deceive. As set forth in the factual statements outlined by the government, and agreed to by Commerzbank, it is...more
FCPA settlements carry with them a basket of compliance and enforcement lessons. The recent Goodyear settlement with the SEC for $16 million carries some important compliance and strategic reminders for ethics and compliance...more
3/9/2015
/ Best Practices ,
Chief Compliance Officers ,
Compliance ,
Due Diligence ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Ethics ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Foreign Subsidiaries ,
Goodyear ,
Integration ,
Popular ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Settlement ,
Voluntary Disclosure ,
Whistleblower Hotlines
With the rise of the compliance function in corporate governance, chief compliance officers and general counsels have had to define their responsibilities and coordinate their activities. To do so, chief compliance officers...more
From a corporate risk perspective, if your company is in the financial industry, healthcare, or defense industry, your greatest legal and compliance risk has to be the False Claims Act....more
1/27/2015
/ Banking Sector ,
Chief Compliance Officers ,
Corporate Integrity Agreement ,
Defense Sector ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Financial Institutions ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare ,
Hospitals ,
Medicare ,
Popular ,
Risk Assessment ,
Risk Mitigation ,
Stark Law
In this collection of recent essays and blog posts, attorney, leading compliance expert, and former federal prosecutor Michael Volkov helps corporate leaders understand how a culture of ethics and compliance is not only the...more
The old expression goes – “Do not break your arm patting yourself on the back” – but maybe I might just extend my arm a little with the Alstom settlement. Last year I predicted that the Alstom case would eclipse Siemens as...more
1/12/2015
/ Alstom ,
Bribery ,
C-Suite Executives ,
Corporate Culture ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Deferred Prosecution Agreements ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
General Electric ,
Popular
We all like annual reviews and predictions for the upcoming year – it is a New Year’s rite of passage and one that brings perspective and a sense of order to our otherwise chaotic lives....more
1/6/2015
/ Alcoa ,
Alstom ,
Avon ,
BizJet ,
Bruker ,
C-Suite Executives ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Defense Sector ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Federal Contractors ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Foreign Official ,
GlaxoSmithKline ,
Manufacturers ,
Medical Devices ,
Personal Liability ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Popular ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Smith & Wesson ,
US v Esquenazi
Giving away my old age, we all loved the 1960s Batman series starring Adam West. Thanks to the Batman show we were given a long list of words to underscore Batman and Robin’s slugfests with the weekly villain (e.g. Penguin,...more
1/5/2015
/ Alstom ,
Avon ,
Bribery ,
China ,
Corporate Management ,
Corporate Officers ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Internal Controls ,
Personal Liability ,
Popular ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Siemens
Life can be very humbling. The SEC has definitely humbled me.
For years now, I have been claiming that companies spend too much time worrying about gifts, meals and entertainment expenses under the FCPA, rather than...more
12/18/2014
/ Bruker ,
Chief Compliance Officers ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Gifts ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Internal Controls ,
Meal and Entertainment Expenditures ,
Multinationals ,
Popular ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
Corporate boards and senior management like to focus on business. They love the numbers, the strategy and the success of a business operation. They have a passion for it and that is why they are sitting on board or managing a...more
The Fourth Quarter of 2014 has been a busy one for DOJ and SEC in the FCPA arena. We are all praying that DOJ and SEC resolve the Avon case soon so that we do not have to include the case on our lists for predictions for...more
11/19/2014
/ Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Declination ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
FCPA Guidance ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Foreign Jurisdictions ,
Internal Investigations ,
Jurisdiction ,
Layne Christensen Co ,
Popular ,
Remediation ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Settlement
The FCPA enforcement doomsayers can add another notch to their belt – their predictions and suggestions of “enforcement slow downs,” “significant policy changes,” and other misguided claims can be added to the ash heap of...more
The Department of Justice's and the SEC's FCPA Guidance issued last November, 2012, outlined the hallmarks of an "effective" anti-corruption compliance program. In the FCPA Guidance, the Justice Department and the SEC...more