The Financial Times has reported that a review of the UK Bribery Act is set to be announced next month as the UK government seeks to reduce the cost of compliance for small- and medium-sized businesses. The main focus of the review will apparently be facilitation payments. These are small payments given to officials to … Continue Reading
In probably one the longest-awaited decrees in recent French regulation, the French Ministry of Health published on 22 May 2013, the application decree to the French Sunshine Act (dated 29 December 2011) implementing the specific ways and means that health care companies must disclose agreements with health care practitioners (“HCPs”), a term that includes medical … Continue Reading
This post was also written by Shannon Voll Poliziani. A crucial decision in most federal “white collar” criminal investigations is whether to “proffer” to the government – to engage in an off-the-record, question-and-answer session with the prosecutor and investigating agent in the hopes of getting immunity, a plea deal, or no charge at all. Because … Continue Reading
Following on from our posts in 2012 (UK Ministry of Justice Launches Consultation on Deferred Prosecution Agreements and UK Government unveils deferred prosecution agreements as a new enforcement tool), we can now report that on 25 April 2013, the Crime and Courts Act 2013 (the “Act”) was passed. The Act introduces deferred prosecution agreements into … Continue Reading
On 23 April 2013, Mr Yang Li was the third individual to be convicted under the UK Bribery Act 2010 after he attempted to bribe his tutor. Mr Li, a student at the University of Bath, offered his tutor £5,000 to amend his dissertation grade, which was 3% short of a pass mark. The tutor … Continue Reading
On 19 December 2012, the French Supreme Court (‘Cour de cassation’) ruled over a case that should remind any international organization that the worldwide adoption of compliance guidelines and of a Code of Conduct is not in itself a sufficient protection against compliance breaches: everything depends on how these tools are implemented locally. The … Continue Reading
This post was also written by Christine Liu and Gordon Schatz. China’s Ministry of Health, along with five other government agencies, issued Trial Regulations on Centralized Procurement of High-Value Consumable Medical Supplies on December 17, 2012. These regulations went into effect immediately upon issuance and contain procedures for the centralized purchasing of a wide range … Continue Reading
Australian national Trent Martin agreed not to challenge a U.S. extradition order in Hong Kong’s Eastern Magistrates Court January 4, 2012. This is the second time in more than 10 years that U.S. authorities have extradited someone on insider trading charges. Please click here to read the issued Client Alert.… Continue Reading
Yesterday, November 15, the SEC issued its 2012 whistleblower report. A total of 115 (3.8%) tips were FCPA related. Additionally, 324 tips (10.8% of total) originated from overseas. The top overseas sources of tips were the UK (74, 23%), Canada (46, 14%), India (33, 10%), China (27, 8%), and Australia (21, 6%). No other single … Continue Reading
This post was also written by Francisca M. Mok. On November 14, the Securities and Exchange Commission and Department of Justice released their long-awaited guidance titled, A Resource Guide to the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. According to the government’s press release, the 120-page guide “provides a detailed analysis of the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices … Continue Reading
On 23 October 2012, the UK Ministry of Justice published the Government’s response to the consultation on deferred prosecution agreements (“DPAs”). This confirmed that DPAs will be introduced in England and Wales as an alternative to prosecution of companies for fraud, bribery and money laundering offences. The Government intends to amend the Crime and Courts … Continue Reading
This post was written by Andrew Bernasconi and Nathan Fennessy. As we noted previously, there has been increasing attention in False Claims Act (“FCA”) cases to whistleblowers who fail to preserve relevant evidence. Now, in a recent decision in the United States District Court for the District of New Mexico, the government has been sanctioned for its … Continue Reading
This post was also written by Andrew C. Bernasconi and Nathan R. Fennessy. In a troubling decision that could have significant implications for grant recipients, the Second Circuit recently held that the proper measure of damages in a False Claims Act (“FCA”) case against a grant recipient is the full amount of the grant, regardless of … Continue Reading
Following on from our last blog, the SFO has published revised statements of policy on its website dealing with facilitation payments, business expenditure (i.e. hospitality and gifts) and self-reporting which take immediate effect and revoke previous guidance. The new statements of policy are blunt. Facilitation payments – the SFO has reiterated that these are illegal under … Continue Reading
This post was written by Rosanne M. Kay and Vanessa Assaiante. The SFO has removed guidance on both self-reporting and on facilitation payments and corporate hospitality from its website leaving uncertainty behind. The removal of the guidance on self-reporting is not surprising. It has been on the cards since Glyn Powell (Head of Fraud at … Continue Reading
This post was written by Andrew C. Bernasconi and Nathan Fennessy. Continuing the recent trend of decisions sanctioning whistleblowers for failing to comply with their discovery obligations (see our previous posts “Whistleblower Precluded from Relying Upon Stolen Records for False Claims Act Case” and “FCA Qui Tam Relator Sanctioned for Destroying Evidence on Company-Issued Laptop”), the … Continue Reading
Qui tam relators may have a difficult time in the future when relying upon stolen records or confidential patient information in False Claims Act (“FCA”) whistleblower actions after a recent decent by the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio. See Cabotage v. Ohio Hospital for Psychiatry, No. 11-cv-50 (S.D. Ohio July … Continue Reading
This post was written by Scot T. Hasselman, Andrew C. Bernasconi, Nathan Fennessy, and Gunjan Talati. In a case of first impression in the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, the court held in United States ex rel. Little v. Shell Exploration & Production Co., No. 11-20320 (5th Cir. July 31, 2012) … Continue Reading
This post was written by Efrem M. Grail and Kyle R. Bahr. Criminal fines against companies and individuals convicted of white collar, antitrust, environmental, health care, and other offenses can balloon into the millions or hundreds of millions of dollars. In a recent ruling that protects the Sixth Amendment rights of defendants in these high-stakes … Continue Reading
This past April, the Second Circuit narrowed federal prosecutors’ ability to charge former employees for stealing proprietary information from their companies. United States v. Aleynikov, 676 F.3d 71 (2d Cir. 2012) (overturning Aleynikov’s conviction for violating the National Stolen Property Act and the Economic Espionage Act after misappropriating trading code from Goldman Sachs). Now, the … Continue Reading
This post was also written by Efrem M. Grail, Esq. A recent Third Circuit opinion undercuts the attorney-client privilege, especially in federal grand Jury investigations of companies and individuals. Under the new precedent, there is no way to immediately challenge a court order invading the protections of the attorney-client privilege without first suffering a judicial … Continue Reading
This post was written by Rosanne M. Kay. I recently spoke at the 6th International Pharmaceutical Compliance Congress in Budapest. Jane de Lozey, Head of Fraud at the Serious Fraud Office (SFO), and Raymond Emson, Head of Policy at the SFO, were also scheduled to speak but unfortunately could not make it at the last … Continue Reading
This post was also written by Shariq Gilani. David Green QC has this month taken over the Directorship of the Serious Fraud Office (“SFO”) from Richard Alderman. Prior to joining the SFO, Mr Green had practised as a barrister specialising in serious crime for more than 25 years. Between 2004 and 2011, he served as … Continue Reading
This post was also written by Shariq Gilani. The Ministry of Justice (“MOJ”) has launched a Consultation on the introduction of Deferred Prosecution Agreements (“DPAs”) in the UK, as a new enforcement tool in dealing with economic crime. As with the U.S. model, the proposed DPAs would allow prosecutors to enter into agreements with commercial … Continue Reading
