Hong Kong Court Finds Former JP Morgan Exec Not Guilty Of Bribery In Connection With “Sons And Daughters” Program
As highlighted in prior posts here and here, in 2016 JP Morgan resolved a $202.6 million Foreign Corrupt Practices Act enforcement action against J.P. Morgan (and a related entity) based on its alleged improper hiring and internship practices that the U.S. government labeled bribery and corruption.
According to the DOJ, “the so-called Sons and Daughters Program was nothing more than bribery by another name. Awarding prestigious employment opportunities to unqualified individuals in order to influence government officials is corruption, plain and simple.”
Like nearly all modern corporate FCPA enforcement actions, the JP Morgan matter was not subjected to any meaningful judicial scrutiny.
Friday Roundup
Sentenced, just saying, scrutiny alerts and updates, fallout, and what’s the difference? It’s all here in the Friday roundup.
Sentenced
As highlighted in this prior post, earlier this year Frank James Lyon (the owner of Lyon Associates Inc. – a privately held engineering and consulting company headquartered in Hawaii) pleaded guilty to violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (based on things of value provided to officials in the Federated States of Micronesia) as well as paying bribes to an agent of an organization receiving federal funds (based on things of value provided to officials with a Hawaii governmental agency – State Agency).
As highlighted in this DOJ release, Lyon was recently sentenced to 30 months in prison.
Friday Roundup
Question to ponder, scrutiny alerts and updates, Caremark, and for the reading stack. It’s all here in the Friday roundup.
Question to Ponder
If publicly-traded companies can put law enforcement to its burden of proof in peer countries, why do publicly traded companies (nearly universally) roll over and play dead when the subject of U.S. law enforcement inquiries?
Further To JPMorgan Representing A Trifecta Of Off-The-Rails FCPA Enforcement
This prior post highlighted the recent article “JPMorgan – A Trifecta of Off-The-Rails FCPA Enforcement” (the article can be downloaded here).
A recent Federal Reserve Board enforcement action against Fang Fang (the former Managing Director and head of China Investment Banking at J.P. Morgan Securities (Asia Pacific) Limited (JPMSAP)) and Timothy Fletcher (the former Managing Director and Head of the Junior Resources Management Group at JPMSAP – the group responsible for recruiting, hiring, staffing, and compensation and reviews for junior employees) further highlights how the JPMorgan Foreign Corrupt Practices Act enforcement (see prior posts here and here) represents a trifecta of off-the-rails enforcement and why anyone who values the rule of law should be alarmed.
In addition, this post highlights how the recent Federal Reserve action against Fang and Fletcher was not the first Federal Reserve action against an individual in the FCPA context.
JPMorgan – A Trifecta Of Off-The-Rails FCPA Enforcement
Bloomberg Law’s White Collar Crime Report recently published my article “JPMorgan – A Trifecta of Off-The-Rails FCPA Enforcement.” The article can be downloaded here and below is the abstract.
The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act has specific elements that must be met in order for there to be a violation. However, with increasing frequency it appears that the Department of Justice and Securities and Exchange Commission have transformed FCPA enforcement into a free-for-all corporate ethics statute in which any conduct the enforcement agencies find objectionable is fair game to extract a multi-million dollar settlement from a risk-averse corporation.