All articles by Tom Fox – Page 27
-
Blog
Use of Compliance Data an Anti-Trust Violation in Europe?
How did the collection of Big Data somehow run afoul of European anti-trust regulations? The Man from FCPA takes a look at one of the more puzzling regulatory decisions to come out of the Eurozone recently, and at what it means for compliance officers everywhere.
-
Blog
Mike Oxley, the FCPA, and the Fight Against Terrorism
When the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act became law years ago, it was never intended to be used as a tool to fight terrorism. But as recent terror activity has illustrated, corruption and terrorism go more than hand in hand; the first helps to create the second. And as we look ...
-
Blog
Tesco’s Tone at the Top and the Myth of the Rogue Employee
Image: We often hear of a rogue employee who is really to blame for a major corruption scandal, but how often do bad apples really cause the problem? And how much is a wider corporate culture—perhaps even one that allows for, or encourages, rogue actors—a more likely source of problems? ...
-
Blog
Compliance Convergence: the Consequences of an Export Control Failure
When a Hellfire missile intended to be shipped from Germany to the United States accidentally ends up in Cuba, more than a few eyebrows raised over it, especially since such sensitive cargo was handled by multiple shipping companies that never seemed to check the manifest or wonder why one of ...
-
Blog
Are VW Execs Breathing Easier Now?
Image: Senior executives at Volkswagen took a very deep sigh of relief when the Justice Department announced a civil suit (?a suit many say is a cakewalk as opposed to the tougher policy set by the Yates memo) against the company for damages from its emissions fraud scandal. In addition, ...
-
Blog
Some Costs of Corruption
Image: A recent Financial Times article says that non-U.S. corruption scandals have outpaced those which are U.S.-centric and, FT points out, the companies at the heart of these scandals fared pretty badly from their own transgressions. Inside, FCPA blogger Tom Fox examines the cases of Volkswagen, whose emissions fraud has ...
-
Blog
Using Social Media to Defend an FCPA Criminal Charge
Image: Social media has certainly changed the way we communicate. Just look at federal securities fraudster Martin Shkreli, known for his extreme social media use, who has continued the practice (not surprisingly) post-arrest. According to the New York Times, Shkreli posts selfie videos “as if the possibility of going to ...
-
Blog
Reform Starts at the Top for FIFA
Image: You might think in today’s corporate world “tone at the top” would be so well worn that you need not repeat it. Yet, tone at the top apparently did warrant repeating for former FIFA head Sepp Blatter. Earlier this week, Blatter announced he would fight the eight-year suspension placed ...
-
Blog
Two Courts—Two Decisions on Whistleblower Protections
Image: A recent court ruling found that employees who reported suspected illegal conduct to their employers rather than to the SEC are entitled to the Dodd-Frank Act anti-retaliation protections. The decision, however, conflicts with a prior court decision, where the court refused to give weight to the SEC’s interpretation of ...
-
Blog
FIFA and Its Banks: Twin Sons of a Different Genus?
Image: Numerous banks, such as BNP Paribas, HSBC, and Standard Chartered, are in talks with the Justice Department about what they knew in connection with the FIFA investigation. In their effort to thwart Swiss secrecy laws, U.S. investigators are trying for more unrestricted access to information in FIFA-concerned bank accounts. ...
-
Blog
The Watergate Hearings and the VW Internal Investigation
What did the President know and when did he know it? Former Senator Fred Thompson wrote those lines, when he was a staffer on the Senate Watergate Committee. His boss, Senator Howard Baker, then uttered them during the Watergate Hearings. Since that time, these two lines have been a mainstay ...
-
Blog
The Legacy of Frederick Bourke Rears Its Head
Sometimes it does not take active bribery or corruption by an individual to violate anti-corruption laws such as the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. It is one of the few laws which makes illegal consciously avoiding the actual knowledge of the underlying crime.
-
Blog
FIFA Internal Investigation: Between Scylla and Charybdis
Image: In theory, U.S. and Swiss authorities are working in tandem to investigate allegations of misconduct by the leaders of the FIFA professional soccer organization. In practice … relations are a bit more complicated, and that leaves the law firm handling FIFA’s internal probe in a difficult spot. CW anti-corruption ...
-
Blog
Conflicts of Interest in Track & Field: Perception or Reality?
Image: FIFA and NFL football are not the only sports mired in ethical controversy any more; now track and field has entered the race. The latest scandals include allegations of rampant doping among Russian athletes, and a clear conflict of interest from the new director of the sport’s oversight body. ...
-
Blog
First British DPA Provides Much to Ponder
It has finally come to pass: the first deferred-prosecution agreement under the U.K. Bribery Act. From the role of judicial oversight (greater than that in the United States) to the final statement of facts (much greater than that in the United States), the settlement with ICBC Standard Bank is full ...
-
Blog
The Press and Exposure of Corruption: BAT Is Next
Allegations of bribery can come to light in many ways, but one way not usually mentioned—that was prominently featured last week—is through news reports. This time the media outlet was the BBC, and the allegations were that bribery at British American Tobacco Co. had occurred in violation of the Bribery ...
-
Blog
Checking Up on GSK in China
When thinking through an FCPA risk assessment, one thing usually not considered adequately is a company’s sales culture. To see the consequences of that, one need look no further than GSK’s corruption troubles in China—but, CW blogger Tom Fox writes, the reforms GSK has implemented with its sales force are ...
-
Blog
First DPA Under U.K. Bribery Act
Image: On Monday the U.K. Serious Fraud Office announced its first deferred-prosecution agreement under the Bribery Act for bribes ICBC Standard Bank Plc paid to government officials in Tanzania intended to sway their favor toward a proposed $600 million private placement. Inside, our anti-corruption blogger Tom Fox explores what lessons ...
-
Blog
Should the FCPA Apply to International Sports Agencies?
Image: What’s happening with the intersection of sports and corruption? It seems as if several pillars of the international sporting world have come crashing down in the past few months through corruption scandals. Yet the FCPA usually does not apply in these corruption cases. Why? Tom Fox, our man from ...
-
Blog
FIFA as ‘Victim’: Your Response Matters When U.S. Government Pays Visit
Image: One lesson from the FIFA corruption scandal is that when the U.S. government comes knocking, it requires a serious and thoughtful response. So far, now-suspended FIFA president Sepp Blatter (left) has responded in a way decidedly not serious and thoughtful. Our anti-corruption blogger Tom Fox takes a closer look ...