Every so often it is interesting to go back into the archives and this post rewinds back to the Summer of 2010.

Enjoy the trip down memory lane.

As highlighted here, the FCPA enforcement action against James Giffen came to a baffling conclusion. The original 2003 indictment charged Giffen with “making more than $78 million in unlawful payments to two senior officials of the Republic of Kazakhstan in connection with six separate oil transactions, in which the American oil companies Mobil Oil, Amoco, Texaco and Phillips Petroleum acquired valuable oil and gas rights in Kazakhstan.”

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FCPA Professor has been described as “the Wall Street Journal concerning all things FCPA-related,” and “the most authoritative source for those seeking to understand and apply the FCPA.”

Set forth below are the topics discussed this week on FCPA Professor.

In the minds of some, companies that have resolved Foreign Corrupt Practices Act enforcement actions are bad or unethical companies. It is a tempting position to take. After all, the FCPA is about bribery and corruption. However, it is a wrong position to take in many (but certainly not all) instances as many companies that resolve FCPA enforcement actions otherwise win awards of being the most ethical, most admired, or otherwise produce products or services that change the world. For instance, as highlighted in this post the U.S. government has partnered with several FCPA violators to help combat COVID-19.

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As highlighted in this prior post, in November 2018 the Department of Justice announced a China Initiative. Among the goals of the China Initiative was to ‘identify Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) cases involving Chinese companies that compete with American businesses.”

Recently, the DOJ updated its China Initiative page and provided approximately 60 “China-Related Case Examples.”

Two FCPA enforcement actions were included. As stated by the DOJ:

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