FCPAméricas Blog
FCPA Compliance Training: On-Line or In-Person?
10.25.2012
When it comes to FCPA training, should companies train their employees and third parties on-line or in-person? As it turns out, both approaches, employed together, make your overall compliance program complete.
In the Attachment Cs to deferred prosecution agreements, the U.S. Department of Justice calls for “periodic training for all directors, officers, and employees, and, where necessary and appropriate, agents and business partners.” But the Department does not indicate the nature of such training. In practice, there are upsides and downsides to the two strategies.
On-Line. On-line training has several clear advantages. It makes the prospect of training thousands of employees economically feasible. On-line programs are easy to translate into foreign languages to target local audiences. Farzad Barkhordari of Click 4 Compliance tells how on-line programs also allow companies to obtain certifications from employees, helping to show that they reviewed all relevant FCPA compliance materials. In contrast, attendees at in-person training might miss important issues when they step out of a session to take a call or use the facilities. On-line training helps remove any potential defen... Read more
The FCPA, Iran Sanctions, and Compliance Convergence
10.18.2012
My friends Howard Sklar and Tom Fox are fond of talking about “compliance convergence.” The idea is that, in an age where compliance expectations are created by a wide range of legal regimes – everything from anti-corruption to export controls, anti-trust to environmental laws – companies can structure their compliance mechanisms efficiently to address a number of regimes in tandem. Recent and dramatic changes in Iran sanctions create yet another opportunity to do so.
Last week, on October 9, 2012, President Obama issued Executive Order 13628, published in 77 Fed. Reg. 62139, that significantly expanded the nature of U.S. sanctions against Iran. Specifically, it extended the prohibited activity (find several relevant regulations at 31 C.F.R. Part 560) to cover the activities of non-U.S. entities that are owned or controlled by U.S. entities. In so doing, it implemented Section 218 of the Iran Threat Reduction and Syria Human Rights Act of 2012 (the ITRA) that President Obama signed... Read more
FCPA Enforcement’s Surprising Effect on Foreign SOEs, and Why It Matters
10.11.2012
Robust FCPA enforcement over the last several years has had some obvious effects. Chief among then, it has caused companies to invest considerable attention and resources in anti-corruption compliance. It has inspired other countries to follow suit, enacting their own anti-corruption laws and enforcement programs. It has helped fuel the proliferation of treaties aimed at cracking down on corruption. One hundred and sixty two countries are now party to the United Nations Convention Against Corruption.
But less obvious, and perhaps more surprising, has been the effect of FCPA enforcement on foreign state-owned enterprises (SOEs), the entities that are often the recipients of the bribes themselves. And this might matter to FCPA compliance.
Consider three recent developments that have resulted from FCPA enforcement:
SOEs conducting internal investigations. Following FCPA enforcement actions, SOEs accepting bribes are starting to conduct their own internal investigations. For example, recent reports from Saudi Arabia signa... Read more
