The Bribery Act: The Countdown Begins

As explained in our Law-Now yesterday, the Ministry of Justice has published its guidance for corporates on putting in place "adequate procedures" to prevent bribery, as required under the Bribery Act 2010 (the "Guidance"). This follows a consultation last year (see our Law-Now), and the Government's announcement that the implementation of the Act would be delayed until three months after the Guidance is published (see our Law-Now), to give corporates time to consider its implications and take any further steps required to design and implement compliance programmes.

The Directors of the Serious Fraud Office ("SFO") and Department for Public Prosecutions ("DPP") have also published joint guidance on prosecutorial decision-making under the Act (the "Prosecution Guidance") to coincide with the Guidance here.