The National Research Council has published a new report finding that all U.S. agencies with counterterrorism programs that collect personal data should be required to evaluate the programs’ effectiveness, lawfulness, and impacts on privacy. In its press release, they summarize that “Collecting and examining data to try to identify terrorists inevitably involves privacy violations, since … Read more »
Kay – Certiorari Denied
The U.S. Supreme Court will not be reviewing the Fifth Circuit’s decision in Kay v. U.S. (cert denied shows up page 8 of the Orders List from October 6, 2008.) Kay argued that the FCPA didn’t apply to bribes to reduce taxes, or that if it applied, the “obtaining or retaining” language in the law … Read more »
Social Networking for Lawyers and Legal IT
I had the pleasure of hosting a lunch meeting for the International Legal Technology Association to talk about Social Networking for Lawyers and Legal IT. I was joined by Jenn Steele and Bob Ambrogi in talking about Facebook, LinkedIn, blogging, Twitter, Legal OnRamp and Martindale Connected. We looked at the ways we each use these … Read more »
Walking The Fine Line Of Compliance In China
Jeffrey M. Rawitz and Erica L. Reilley of Jones Day published an article in Mondaq: China: The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act: Walking The Fine Line Of Compliance In China. Four Suggestions for Avoiding FCPA Complications in China Any company seeking to avoid potential FCPA problems in China, or elsewhere, should start by developing a rigorous … Read more »
Compliance and Cloud Computing
Sara Peters wrote an article on Security Provoked: How Can You Prove Compliance in the Cloud? Whether you’re in the midst of an audit or a forensic investigation, thorough logs are the key to proving compliance with security regulations. So how do you prove your organization is/was compliant when you aren’t able to maintain logs? … Read more »
Shearman & Sterling’s FCPA Digest
Danforth Newcomb of Shearman & Sterling LLP put together a digest of FCPA cases and review releases (.pdf) relating to bribes of foreign officials under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (through February 13, 2008). Read more »
Product Samples and The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act
Richard L. Cassin of The FCPA Blog highlights Review Procedure Release No. 81-02 from December 11, 1981: A Rare (Or Medium-Rare) Opportunity. The release helps give a roadmap on how to introduce new products to potential government customers in foreign countries without violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. In Release 81-02 (December 11, 1981), the … Read more »
History of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act
In 1977, Congress enacted the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act as part of the 1934 Securities Exchange Act . The FCPA criminalized the bribery of foreign officials by U.S. corporations and individuals pursuing business in other countries and required that companies with publicly-traded stock meet certain standards regarding their accounting practices, books and records, and internal … Read more »
The Specially Designated Nationals List (SDN)
The Office of Foreign Assets Control in the Treasury Department keeps the Specially Designated Nationals List (SDN). The Specially Designated Nationals List is a publication of OFAC which lists individuals and organizations with whom United States citizens and permanent residents are prohibited from doing business. Read more »
FCPA Investigations are on the Rise
According to the Wall Street Journal’s Law Blog, And the FCPA Party Continues: “U.S. government had open investigations into 84 companies at the end of last year, up from three in 2002, according to Shearman & Sterling. “In the 30-plus years I have followed these matters, there were long periods of little activity and few … Read more »