U.S. Department of Justice Announces Revised FCPA Corporate Enforcement Policy
On November 29, 2017, Deputy Attorney General Rod J. Rosenstein announced a revised U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”) Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (“FCPA”) Corporate Enforcement Policy, designed to further incentivize companies to self-report potential FCPA violations. Building on the framework announced in a DOJ pilot program last year, the new policy offers companies that voluntarily self-disclose, fully cooperate, and timely and appropriately remediate substantial cooperation credit—including the presumption of a declination from DOJ criminal prosecution (absent certain aggravating circumstances). Companies will still be required to pay all disgorgement, forfeiture, and/or restitution resulting from any misconduct at issue. The policy has been added to the U.S. Attorneys’ Manual, which guides prosecutors on when and how to exercise discretion in reaching charging decisions. Importantly, the policy has no impact on other enforcement authorities in the U.S., including the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), or abroad.