Bass, Berry & Sims attorneys Lindsey Fetzer, Thad McBride and Abby Yi co-authored an article published by Corporate Compliance Insights highlighting takeaways from recent U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) enforcement actions related to the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA).
The FCPA does not mandate self-disclosure of potential violations. However, when determining whether to charge a corporation and how to resolve potential FCPA violations, prosecutors take into consideration a company’s timely and voluntary disclosure of a violation and its cooperation with the government’s investigation, among other factors. Accordingly, some companies choose to self-disclose potential FCPA violations to the DOJ. Others decide not to self-report. Companies must carefully consider the costs and benefits of a self-disclosure to the DOJ.
Lindsey, Thad and Abby examined the latest policy changes related to voluntary disclosure and reviewed two recent enforcement actions to identify key factors companies should consider when deciding whether to self-disclose a potential FCPA violation. “Companies evaluating whether to self-report violations of the FCPA should carefully consider whether the potential benefits of voluntary disclosure outweigh the risks,” the authors said. “The risk calculus is complicated and fact-intensive.”
The full article, “Inconsistencies in FCPA Enforcement: Key Considerations for a Potential FCPA Voluntary Disclosure,” was published by Corporate Compliance Insights on November 11, 2019, and is available online.