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Corruption

The challenges

Companies and their directors are at risk from investigation and prosecution if they are involved in any form of corrupt arrangement either in the UK or abroad.

The UK Bribery Act 2010, which will come into force on 1 July 2011, makes sweeping changes to UK bribery legislation.  It will have a major impact on UK companies/organisations in all sectors as well as foreign businesses operating a branch or subsidiary in the UK.

It will also introduce the new corporate offence of "failing to prevent" bribery.

The Bribery Act will make the UK anti-bribery regime one of the strictest in the world and is far wider than the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act 1977 (FCPA).  The FCPA renders UK businessmen liable in the US for actions taken outside of the US if such corrupt payments occurred in US dollars. This means directors and officers face extradition for corrupt activity even where no part of the arrangement directly occurred in the US jurisdiction.

Because businesses and individuals can be caught by a variety of anti-corruption legislation around the world, including the new Bribery Act, it is important to understand the risks involved and how to avoid them.

How we can help

At Eversheds we have extensive experience in dealing with clients from particular sectors.  We understand the greater risks of corruption associated with certain industries such as energy, technology, telecoms, medical & pharmaceutical, food and agriculture, metal, minerals and mining, construction and chemicals. We also understand which countries pose the greatest risk. We have assisted many of our clients in responding to fraud and corruption issues in recent years, so we know from experience where the problems lie.

Once an investigation is underway, we can advise on disclosure requests, interviews and proceedings (including extradition proceedings), whether they are occurring in the UK or elsewhere.

With a large team of experienced criminal and regulatory lawyers, we are ideally placed to support you in your review of your processes and systems to avoid such investigations in the first place.  We can help you with a comprehensive risk assessment exercise and work with you to ensure that you are ready for the Bribery Act. In particular, we can:

• develop or review your policies relating to anti-corruption, gifts and hospitality, whistleblowing and procurement
• work with you to undertake a thorough risk assessment of your anti-bribery and corruption risks
• advise on corruption related due diligence issues for M&A activity and/or joint ventures
• develop and deliver structured training programmes for your board/senior management/staff (including bespoke online training solutions); and
• support your team on fraud and corruption related internal investigations.

Further information

For more information or assistance please contact us:

Paul Worth
Partner
paulworth@eversheds.com
0845 497 7623

Neill Blundell
Partner
neillblundell@eversheds.com
0845 497 4533

Mark Surguy
Partner
marksurguy@eversheds.com
0845 497 1377

Please also visit our Corruption Clampdown Report page to see the results of research we conducted earlier this year which shows that many businesses are in the dark over the new UK Bribery Act 2010.