FCPAméricas Blog
Results of the 2012 Latin America Corruption Survey
6.14.2012
Miller & Chevalier and Matteson Ellis Law joined with 12 Latin American law firms in a survey of companies spanning 14 countries in the Americas to gain an understanding of the extent of corruption throughout the region, the effects of corruption on companies operating in those countries, perceptions of the effectiveness of regional anti-corruption laws, and the tools that companies are using to address corruption risks. The survey was covered this morning in the Wall Street Journal and on Reuters.
A similar survey was conducted by Miller & Chevalier in 2008. The 2012 results, although consistent with some of the findings of the 2008 survey, show a variety of notable differences, suggesting a growing relevance of anti-corruptions laws in the region and increased attention to corporate compliance.
The survey, available in English, Spanish and Portuguese, was co... Read more
Five Things You Did Not Know about the SEC Whistleblower Program
6.13.2012
Or at least I did not know . . . until I attended Compliance Week’s 2012 Annual Conference last week. At the conference, the Deputy Chief of the SEC’s Whistleblower Office, Jane Norberg, gave an informative presentation. She qualified her statements by saying they were her own – she was not speaking on behalf of the SEC.
1. Office Doubling in Size. The SEC’s Whistleblower Office is now in the process of hiring five additional staff attorneys to handle its significant caseload. The attorneys will join the four staff attorneys and one Deputy attorney who already work in the office. This can safely be taken as an indication that whistleblower tips are on the rise and that the office predicts the trend will continue.
2. Whistleblower’s Place in Line Matters. The whistleblower’s place in line before the SEC matters because the first whistleblower to disclose certain information is the one who receives all of the credit for it. If the whistleblower informs the SEC that he or she has already disclosed or plans to disclose the issue to the company first allowing the company’s compliance program to address... Read more
Answers from Internal Audit on FCPA Compliance
6.06.2012
FCPAméricas recently asked the question: how does Internal Audit do it all at a time when FCPA practitioners keep asking it for more? Top executives at Compliance Week’s 2012 Annual Conference offered some helpful answers.
Communication. In the audit world, relationships are key. Internal Audit teams that prioritize communication with other parts of the business more effectively manage their many responsibilities, including FCPA work. For example, one major technology company established a formal structure designed to facilitate communication whereby leaders from Internal Audit, Compliance, Legal, and business groups meet quarterly and collaborate on issues. When Compliance knows that an FCPA compliance audit will soon be necessary, it will proactively bring it to Internal Audit’s attention early on. If Internal Audit has previously reviewed a business sector or third party currently under review by Legal, it will share that information up front so that Legal’s work can be more targeted.
Similarly, at a major manufacturing company, the senior internal auditor shapes the audit plan to meet FCPA needs by scheduling regu... Read more
