The corruption trials against three former executives of PetroTiger ended with a whimper in June, when the last defendant pled guilty to FCPA violations. Contrary to what many say, however, the PetroTiger case offered some valuable—and good—news for compliance officers. This week, columnist Tom Fox reviews how the company avoided FCPA charges (impressive) even as its senior executives committed serious misconduct (really impressive). More inside.
Tom Fox
Thomas Fox has practiced law for over 40 years. Tom writes the daily award-winning blog, the FCPA Compliance and Ethics blog and founded the Compliance Podcast Network. Tom leads the discussion on AI in compliance through his best-selling book Upping Your Game. He has 38 other books on the use of AI in compliance and business ethics, leadership including the seminal work, The Compliance Handbook, with its 7th edition coming out in 2025. He is the founder of the award-winning Compliance Podcast Network.
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Posted inRegulatory Enforcement
As BHP Enforcement Shows, the Proof Is in the Doing
Yes, Virginia, you can violate the FCPA even without bribing a foreign government official—just ask BHP Billiton, fined $25 million by the SEC for having a compliance program that looked great on paper, but was never strongly implemented. This week, columnist Tom Fox does a post-mortem on how BHP’s program demonstrates the flaw of not doing compliance, and regulators’ no-nonsense attitude about it.
Posted inAnti-Bribery
FIFA Drops the Ball: Corruption and FCPA Charges
Last week, a 47-count indictment was unsealed in a federal court in Brooklyn, charging 14 defendants—all associated with the governing body of international soccer, the Fédération Internationale de Football Association—in connection with their participation in a 24-year scheme to enrich themselves through the corruption of international soccer. In a special guest post, columnist Tom Fox offers his quick take on the story. More inside.
Posted inRegulatory Enforcement
The SEC Views on Whistleblowers: Sit Up and Listen
Whistleblowers—protecting them, working with them, not stifling them—continue to be one of the most important parts of the compliance officer’s job. This week, columnist Tom Fox reviews the SEC’s recent pronouncements on how it wants whistleblowers to be treated and how the SEC itself plans to keep encouraging whistleblowers to step forward. “The SEC is clear that it will test how your company treats whistleblowers,” he warns. More inside.
Posted inRegulatory Enforcement
Still Reading Tea Leaves on FCPA Enforcement? Try Listening and Reading
Sometimes all the angst and analysis about FCPA enforcement need not happen; sometimes, voices in the enforcement community just tell us what’s coming. That has been the case lately, Compliance Week columnist Tom Fox writes this week, as the SEC’s recent settlement with KBR over confidentiality agreements proves. Inside, he examines where the KBR case came from and how your compliance team should react to it.
Posted inRegulatory Enforcement
The Ups and Downs of FCPA Politics in Washington
Several events in Washington lately show just how well FCPA enforcement is—or more precisely, is not—understood there. This week, columnist Tom Fox turns his eye first to critics of the Justice Department’s new top FCPA prosecutor, and then to Texas Sen. Ted Cruz and his ham-handed efforts to politicize the enforcement of America’s foremost anticorruption law. More inside.
Posted inRegulatory Enforcement
Slippery Slope of FCPA Enforcement Against Individuals
The compliance community has long hectored the Justice Department to prosecute more individuals, rather than corporations. Now we’re starting to see that happen, and a thicket of legal questions are arising. Inside, Compliance Week columnist Tom Fox gives a tour of the current landscape. What’s on the horizon is not pretty.
Posted inRegulatory Enforcement
Painful Lessons Learned From Alstom, Avon Settlements
Two long-standing FCPA investigations—one into Avon, the other into Alstom—wrapped up in December, with results sure to alarm any audit committee. The fines were huge, the investigation costs just as large and, above all, the costs of non-cooperation were demonstrated to be painfully high. Inside, Compliance Week columnist Tom Fox picks through the wreckage for lessons you can take back to your compliance operation.
Posted inAccounting & Auditing
Janus, COSO, FCPA Compliance and Enforcement
The U.S. Sentencing Guidelines have long been one path to kinder treatment from the Justice Department for FCPA violations. On the civil side enforced by the SEC, something similar may be emerging: the COSO 2013 framework for effective internal control. How different are those two paths? Not as much as you might think, Compliance Week columnist Tom Fox writes. Then again, regulators can follow clear paths too. More inside.
Posted inAnti-Bribery
How Layne Christensen and Hewlett-Packard Earned Favorable Treatment After an FCPA Charge
When Layne Christensen, a global water management and construction company, and tech pioneer Hewlett-Packard were targeted for violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, they both escaped harsh punishments by cooperating with enforcement authorities. Their actions serve as a how-to for earning cooperation credit. Inside, columnist Tom Fox runs down their efforts, from conducting thorough internal investigations to taking extensive remediation measures.