Despite Slow Start to Year, Aggressive FCPA Enforcement Likely Not Far Away

With a changing of the guard in Washington and the lingering COVID-19 pandemic, enforcement of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) has been relatively quiet so far this year. Under President Biden and Attorney General Garland, the Department of Justice (DOJ) has announced only one new FCPA corporate enforcement action. The new criminal charges DOJ has brought against individuals for their roles in foreign corruption schemes mostly arise out of long-running cases involving state-owned oil companies in Latin America.

More aggressive enforcement of the FCPA—and other federal anti-corruption laws—may not be far away, though. In June 2021, President Biden issued a “Memorandum on Establishing the Fight Against Corruption as a Core United States National Security Interest.” And in January 2021, Congress gave the DOJ and the Securities and Exchange Commission new enforcement tools in the National Defense Authorization Act of 2021. Meanwhile, other countries around the world—including Brazil, Italy, and the United Kingdom—have been flexing their anti-corruption law enforcement muscles this year.

Arnold & Porter’s recap of anti-corruption enforcement to date in 2021, as well as insights for the rest of the year, can be found in its Global Anti-Corruption Insights: Summer 2021 newsletter.

© Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer LLP 2021 All Rights Reserved. This blog post is intended to be a general summary of the law and does not constitute legal advice. You should consult with counsel to determine applicable legal requirements in a specific fact situation.