Anti-Corruption

Overview

Our team provides a full range of cross-disciplinary services to address all aspects of the global anti-corruption issues facing growing businesses. We work with our clients in the U.S. and internationally to identify and mitigate corruption risks efficiently and effectively, including developing compliance programs, advising on corruption issues that arise in corporate and commercial transactions, and conducting internal investigations triggered by internal concerns or government inquiries.

We have conducted numerous international investigations involving violations of anti-bribery and fraud statutes. We provide practical, business-sensitive, and specific anti-corruption compliance advice that considers a company’s size, scope of operations, target jurisdictions, and points of corruption risk.

Our team provides due diligence counseling on anti-corruption risks in mergers and acquisitions and advises companies on mitigating successor liability risk under the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA). We build effective contractual mechanisms into international commercial agreements, including distribution and supply chain agreements, to mitigate corruption risk. Our team advises on the effective screening of third-party agents and distributors and counsels non-U.S. businesses regarding the FCPA compliance obligations that arise with expansion into the U.S. market.

We draw on our attorneys’ collective experience in representing clients before the DOJ and the SEC.  Our representations have included advising clients on the Justice Department’s FCPA Opinion Procedure, voluntary disclosures of FCPA violations to the Justice Department and SEC, and settlement of FCPA proceedings through deferred prosecution agreements, non-prosecution agreements, and similar mechanisms. In addition, we have advised and guided clients through issues raised under the UK Anti-Bribery Act, the French Loi Sapin II, the Canadian Corruption of Foreign Public Officials Act, and other international anti-corruption laws and regulations.

Our team includes former federal prosecutors, SEC enforcement attorneys, and transactional attorneys with experience in more than 40 international jurisdictions, including Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Ecuador, France, Germany, India, Israel, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, Nigeria, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland, United Kingdom, and Ukraine. We help clients maximize their potential and minimize their risks internationally.

Experience

  • Represented a Brazilian corporation and U.S. “issuer” in one of the largest FCPA settlements arising from Brazil’s Lava Jato (Operation Car Wash) anti-corruption probe.
  • Represented a petrochemical company in a multi-country investigation conducted by the DOJ, SEC, and their law enforcement counterparts in Europe and South America.
  • Represented an international construction company in an FCPA investigation related to a project in the Middle East.
  • Represented the chief executive officer of a US-based oil drilling company in a joint DOJ and SEC FCPA investigation into payments made by the company in connection with its operations in Africa and South America.
  • Represented an executive officer of an Ecuadoran subsidiary of a Swiss company in a joint DOJ and SEC FCPA investigation into payments made by the subsidiary in connection with the award of a major government contract in Ecuador.
  • Advised a U.S.-based medical services provider on FCPA issues related to a joint venture hospital in China.
  • Advised a large U.S. retailer on FCPA risks in a multi-jurisdiction supply chain.
  • Advised a large tobacco company in connection with voluntary disclosure under FCPA and settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice.
  • Counseled an international franchise system on FCPA exposure created by international franchisees and designed a risk-based compliance program reflecting client operations in more than 25 international jurisdictions.
  • Counseled an RFID chip manufacturer on mitigating FCPA risk in connection with the Korean government’s purchase of chips.
  • Provided FCPA support in connection with a U.S.-based investment fund’s operations in Gulf Cooperation Council jurisdictions.

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