Approximately four months after President Trump imposed a pause on new Foreign Corrupt Practice Act (FCPA) investigations and enforcement actions, the US Department of Justice (DOJ) has issued new guidelines lifting that pause but laying out its new enforcement priorities. The new FCPA guidelines, along with remarks by acting Criminal Division leader Matthew Galeotti,[1] and a May 12, 2025 memo on white-collar enforcement set forth an approach to FCPA enforcement that is explicitly aimed at promoting US economic interests and national security.[2]
DOJ’s prior enforcement approach came to an abrupt halt on February 10, 2025, when President Trump signed Executive Order 14209, Pausing Foreign Corrupt Practices Act Enforcement to Further American Economic and National Security (the “Executive Order”),[3] which directed DOJ to (1) reevaluate “all existing FCPA investigations or enforcement actions”; and (2) develop policies and guidelines that prioritize American foreign policy and economic interests.[4]
Shortly before, on February 5, 2025, Attorney General Pam Bondi, issued a memo titled “Total Elimination of Cartels and Transnational Criminal Organizations”[5] ordering, among other things, that federal prosecutors in the FCPA Unit in the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section should prioritize FCPA enforcement involving cartels and TCOs[6] , and simultaneously eliminating the FCPA Unit’s exclusive jurisdiction over FCPA matters in such cases. Both the Executive Order and AG Bondi’s memo are discussed in more detail here.
In the wake of those announcements, companies and individuals potentially subject to the FCPA have awaited further information about the future of FCPA enforcement. During that time, DOJ has, in some cases, withdrawn or declined to prosecute cases that were slated to proceed to trial. In others, DOJ has made clear its intention to move forward, suggesting that the DOJ was not entirely abandoning its enforcement of the FCPA. The guidance issued Tuesday provides additional clarity on DOJ’s current priorities, although it also leaves open some important questions.[7]
Footnotes
[1] On the same day that the new FCPA guidelines were issued, Galeotti delivered remarks at the American Conference Institute Conference on Global Anti-Corruption, Ethics & Compliance related to the new FCPA guidelines and the broader May 12, 2025 white-collar enforcement guidelines. Galeotti emphasized that the guidelines provide a non-exhaustive list of factors and evaluation criteria for FCPA enforcement. He characterized these guidelines as a step towards “the vindication of US interest.”
[2] The May 12, 2025 memo on white-collar enforcement outlines the Criminal Division’s enforcement priorities and policies for prosecuting corporate and white collar-crime. It has several overlapping themes with the new FCPA guidelines: (1) a focus on protecting US interests by limiting the burdens/harms from white-collar investigations and prosecutions; (2) a focus on Chinese companies; (3) a focus on Cartels and Transnational Criminal Organizations (TCOs); (4) and a shift towards prosecuting individuals instead of assigning the malfeasance to companies. See US Department of Justice, Criminal Division, “Focus, Fairness, and Efficiency in the Fight Against White-Collar Crime” (May 12, 2025).
[3] For more information on the Executive Order, please see: Jenner & Block, “Client Alert: The Trump Administration Calls for a Pause on New FCPA Enforcement, but Don’t Abandon Compliance Programs Just Yet” (Feb. 14, 2025).
[4] See Executive Order 14209, “Pausing Foreign Corrupt Practices Act Enforcement to Further American Economic and National Security,” Sec. 2 (Feb. 10, 2025).
[5] Office of the Attorney General, “Total Elimination of Cartels and Transnational Criminal Organizations” (Feb. 5, 2025).
[6] TCOs refer to organized crime coordinated across national borders, involving groups or markets of individuals working in more than one country to plan and execute illegal business ventures. See Yuriy A. Voronin, “Measures to Control Transnational Organized Crime,” Summary, Nat’l Criminal Just. Reference Serv., U.S. Dep’t of Just., NCJ No. 184773, (2000).
[7] Often more important than stated policy objectives, staffing (for FCPA) remains an open question. The Trump Administration’s priorities may be more obviously reflected in whether the resources for bringing FCPA cases remain within the DOJ or if they have been diverted to other more pressing concerns. This includes the need for a clearer understanding of the number of trial lawyers in the FCPA Unit itself, the support of detailees to the Unit, and the capacity for bringing these cases at the 93 US Attorney’s Offices around the country.
[8] See Office of the Attorney General, “Guidelines for Investigations and Enforcement of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA)”, Sec. 1(A) (June 9, 2025).
[9] Id., Sec. 1(B).
[10] The memo also instructs prosecutors in conducting investigations and prosecutions under the Foreign Extortion Prevention Act, 18 U.S.C. § 1352, which criminalizes the “demand side” of foreign bribery, to consider whether specific and identifiable US entities or individuals have been harmed by foreign officials’ demands for bribes.
[11] Supra note 1.
[12] Supra note 7, Sec. 1(C).
[13] Id., quoting Executive Order §1.
[14]Supra note 7, Sec. 1(D).
[15] Id., quoting Executive Order §1.
[16] Id.
[17] Id.
[18] Id.
[19] Supra note 7, Sec. 2.
[20] Supra note 7 at 1.
[21] Jenner & Block, “Client Alert: The Case for Compliance: Why UK and EU Businesses Should Continue to Invest in Their Compliance Programs” (Mar. 24, 2025).
[22] Law 360 UK, “Ephgrave Eyes Covert Tactics To Fix Drop in Self-Reporting” (April 3, 2025).
[23] GOV.UK, “UK, France and Switzerland announce new anti-corruption alliance” (Mar. 20, 2025).
[24] International Anti-Corruption Prosecutorial Taskforce, Founding Statement (Mar. 20, 2025).
[25] 18 U.S.C. § 3292
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