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Compendium Roundup
This month, while U.S. enforcement authorities continued to issue declinations, anti-corruption enforcement in China and Brazil reached new levels. GlaxoSmithKline PLC ("GlaxoSmithKline") agreed to pay an unprecedented US $491.5 million to Chinese authorities after the company's Chinese subsidiary was found guilty of bribery on September 19, 2014. The ruling followed a one-day trial in Changsha, Hunan, and the penalty marks the largest corporate fine ever imposed in China. GlaxoSmithKline's subsidiary in China allegedly paid bribes totaling US $482 million to health officials and doctors through over 700 travel agencies in order to boost sales. The bribes were allegedly paid by sales teams to bribe doctors and hospitals to achieve the company's sales targets.
In Brazil, authorities filed a criminal action against eight Embraer SA employees who allegedly paid US $3.5 million in bribes to officials in the Dominican Republic to obtain a US $92 million contract for attack planes. If convicted, this case will mark the first known effort by Brazil to prosecute its citizens for bribes paid abroad.
Meanwhile, Image Sensing Systems ("ISS") announced that both the U.S. Securities and Enforcement Commission ("SEC") and U.S. Department of Justice ("DOJ") have declined to prosecute. The allegations stemmed from an investigation by Polish authorities in December 2012, when two employees of ISS Poland were charged with criminal violations of the Polish tender and corruption laws under the Polish Penal and Criminal Codes related to a project in Łodz. The Polish investigation appears to be ongoing.
There have also been developments for Alstom SA, Rolls Royce Group pLc, SNC Lavalin, BHP Billiton Limited, General Cable Corporation, VimpelCom Ltd., Innospec, Leighton Holdings Ltd., Israel Military Industries, Petrobras, Volkswagen AG, and Eni SpA.
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SEC announces record-breaking $30 million whistleblower award. The award, which is the largest in the Commission's history, was for key information related to an ongoing fraud investigation. It also marks the fourth time that a whistleblowing award has been made to someone living in a foreign country.
GSK agrees to pay $491 million penalty to Chinese authorities because of bribery charges - The announcement of the largest corporate fine ever imposed in China came in the wake of a one-day trial in Changsha, Hunan, finding the company's subsidiary guilty of bribing Chinese doctors and hospitals. Investigations in the United States and the United Kingdom appear to be ongoing.
California court dismisses human rights abuse case against Cisco Systems - The California court ruled that the plaintiffs, who had brought their case partially under the Alien Tort Statute, did not sufficiently show facts that human rights abuses touched and concerned the United States with sufficient force to overcome the presumption against extraterritorial application of the statute. The decision closely followed the Supreme Court's 2012 ruling in
U.S. Commerce Department publishes list of all known conflict mineral processing facilities - The list, which was made public pursuant to section 1502(d)(3)(C) of the Dodd-Frank Act, tells companies all known facilities that process the minerals tin, tantalum, tungsten, or gold, but does not indicate whether a specific facility processes minerals that are used to finance conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo or an adjoining country.
Brazilian authorities charge Embraer SA employees of bribing officials of the Dominican Republic - Brazilian authorities are reportedly working alongside their U.S. counterparts to collect evidence of a $3.5 million bribe to a retired Dominican Air Force colonel. The case marks one of the first major actions by Brazilian authorities to curb instances of bribery abroad.
Vote now on the TRACEblog.
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Articles Written by TRACE
12 September 2014
Alexandra Wrage, Corporate Counsel
30 September 2014
Alexandra Wrage, Corporate Counsel
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The Wednesday InterWRAGEtory quiz has concluded for 2014 and will begin again summer 2015.
Sign up for our mailing list to receive quiz updates and other training resources.
September Quiz Questions:
September 3, 2014
Which participant(s) failed to attend the anti-corruption meeting scheduled between President Obama and then President Medvedev during President Obama's trip to Moscow in 2009?
September 10, 2014
In the past 2 years, which industry has had the most publicly reported domestic and foreign enforcement actions for bribery?
September 17, 2014
Which classic piece of literature addresses corruption and contains the line, "No becomes Yes for money"?
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Featured Resource: Lists identifying sanctioned Russian and Ukrainian individuals
Detailed reports identifying the holdings of Russian and Ukrainian individuals and entities who have been designated on U.S., E.U., Canadian and Australian
sanctions lists in connection with the death of Sergei Magnitsky and the 2014 conflict between Russia and Ukraine will soon be available in our members-only TRACE Resource Center.
These reports, which will be updated on a monthly basis, have been compiled by Baker & McKenzie in collaboration with TRACE to help companies manage compliance risks and due diligence requirements.
For more information or to request the executive summaries of these reports when they become available, please write to [email protected].
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TRACE Anti-Bribery Specialist Accreditation (TASA)
TASA (TRACE Anti-Bribery Specialist Accreditation) offers the most comprehensive, high-quality and easily accessible anti-bribery education on the market. TASA boasts over 100 online courses taught by a world-renowned faculty of anti-bribery experts. Candidates have access to an extensive library of recorded webinars as well as live webinars, scheduled regularly throughout the year.
TRACE members now have complimentary access to live TASA webinars. However, access to the online library of recorded courses and the TASA accreditation exam is limited to TASA candidates.
The new TASA website will be launched this week! Stay tuned for the big announcement.
Upcoming live TASA accredited ACI conferences include:
October 22-23, 2014, Miami, FL
December 1-2, 2014, Singapore
To inquire about discounts and credits, write to
[email protected].
Compliance's Next Frontier: Preventing Bribery through Shell & Shelf Companies
3 October 2014, 12:00 pm-1:15 pm
Faculty: Savaria B. Harris, Partner, DLA Piper and James Brachulis, Senior Financial Investigator, DLA Piper
The PRC Labor and Employment Law Regime and Its Effects on Investigations
8 October 2014, 10:00 am-11:15 am
Faculty: K. Lesli Ligorner, Esq., Partner, Simmons & Simmons LLP, Shanghai, China
Putting China's Anti-Corruption Campaign in Context
15 October 2014, 10:00 am-11:15 am
Faculty: Nate Bush, Partner, O'Melveny & Myers, Beijing The Other Anti-Bribery Litigation: Understanding Risk & Exposure Under the False Claims Act 12 November 2014, 12:00 pm-1:15 pm Faculty: Savaria B. Harris, Partner, DLA Piper Effective Anti-Corruption Strategies in the Public Procurement Process: Making Transparency Work 19 November 2014*, 12:00 pm-1:15 pm Faculty: Max Kaiser, Partner, CAYAD S.C., Mexico *This course will also be offered in Spanish on 21 November 2014.
TASA accredited TRACE events:
Upcoming TRACE events are listed below. TASA candidates may earn up to 6 credits for attending a full two-day TRACE conference and up to 3 credits for attending a TRACE workshop or roundtable.
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TRACE Roundtables offer senior-level compliance professionals an opportunity to participate in an advanced discussion on the latest anti-bribery enforcement trends and compliance best practices. Roundtables are led by a TRACE representative and feature special guest speakers. Upcoming roundtables are listed below.
Palo Alto, Technology Sector, October 21, 2014
Click here to view the agenda.
Melbourne, January 22, 2015
The program is still under development.
To request an invitation or suggest locations for upcoming events, please write to [email protected].
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Join TRACE at an upcoming workshop location near you or send your local employees and intermediaries. TRACE anti-bribery workshops address international and local regulatory developments, enforcement trends and compliance best practices. Speakers include TRACE representatives, senior compliance executives and anti-bribery lawyers. Employees and intermediaries of TRACE member companies attend at no charge.
Dubai, October 21, 2014
Click here to view the agenda.
Istanbul, October 30, 2014
Click here to view the agenda.
New Delhi, November 5, 2014
Click here to view the agenda-at-a-glance.
Sydney, January 20, 2015
The program is still under development.
To request an invitation or suggest locations for upcoming events, please write to [email protected].
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OCTOBER
Atlanta, GA
October 1-3, 2014
TRACE International is excited to be sponsoring and exhibiting at the ECOA's 22nd Annual E&C Conference.
*Alexandra Wrage, TRACE President, speaking
London, UK
October 7-8, 2014
*Alexandra Wrage, TRACE President, speaking
London, UK
October 13-15, 2014
*Severin Wirz, Manager, Advisory Services, speaking
Berlin
October 14-15, 2014
Singapore
October 15-16, 2014
*Alexandra Wrage, TRACE President, speaking
Miami, FL
October 15-16, 2014
London
October 21, 2014
Brussels, Belgium
October 21-22, 2014
*Eileen Radford, Director, Advisory Services, speaking
NOVEMBER
November 11-12, 2014
Milan
London
November 11-13, 2014
*Eileen Radford, Director, Advisory Services, speaking
Montecasino, Johannesburg
November 17-20, 2014
Washington, DC
November 17-20, 2014
Copenhagen, Denmark
November 25-26, 2014
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Sincerely,
151 West Street Annapolis, Maryland 21401 410-990-0076 | 410-990-0707 (fax) www.traceinternational.org |
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