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ARTICLE · 12 JULY 2023

Foreign bribery reform back on the table

Corrs Chambers Westgarth
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Be aware of the proposed changes to the legal framework for prosecuting companies for foreign bribery offences.

AustraliaCriminal Law
Abigail Gill
Abigail Gill
Lily Vadasz
Lily Vadasz
Harrison Frith
Harrison Frith
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On 22 June 2023, the Australian Government re-introduced the previously lapsed amendments to the Criminal Code Act 1995 (Cth) (the Code) with some notable changes and a plan to strengthen the legal framework for prosecuting Australian companies for foreign bribery offences. It is imperative that businesses take note of the proposed changes as they pose risks that will require robust safeguards to be put in place to avoid corporate criminal liability.

The Crimes Legislation Amendment (Combatting Foreign Bribery) Bill 2023(Cth) (the Bill) that is before the House of Representatives takes a substantially similar shape to the previous drafts under the Turnbull and Morrison Governments with the following three key changes:

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