FCPA/Anti-Bribery Alert - Summer 2012

INTRODUCTION

For the last several years we have reported on the developing trend of enhanced anti-corruption enforcement and the concomitant dedication of resources by prosecutors, regulators and other interested parties around the world. Not only have we witnessed a continued commitment toward enhanced anti-corruption activities, but it would appear prudent at this point to conclude that we have passed the tipping point: anti-corruption norms are no longer a trend whose ebbs and flows are properly followed, but are better considered fixtures in the firmament of good corporate governance.

Accordingly, we continue to see regulatory and prosecutorial authorities seeking and obtaining financial penalties amounting to tens of millions of dollars and jail sentences for individuals. While the United States Department of Justice has had several set-backs in its prosecution efforts in the past year, we see no evidence that the DOJ will diminish its efforts or that it has