“Bribery is not a victimless crime.”
It is a narrative in DOJ FCPA talking points (see here for instance).
If bribery is not a victimless crime, then why do FCPA fines and penalties nearly always simply go directly into the U.S. Treasury?
If bribery is not a victimless crime, then why does the DOJ often oppose the attempts by purported victims to pursue legal remedies in connection with certain FCPA enforcement actions? For instance, in connection with certain FCPA enforcement actions, private plaintiffs have sought restitution pursuant to the Mandatory Victims Restitution Act, however the DOJ has opposed such efforts. (See here for an example).
If bribery is not a victimless crime, then why did the Deputy Solicitor General acknowledge during oral arguments before the Supreme Court that “there really is no obvious universe of individual victims from an FCPA violation.” (See here for the prior post).
All interesting issues to ponder.
Here is another interesting issue to ponder.
The DOJ maintains a Victim Notification Program and is “committed to ensuring that victims of federal crime are treated with dignity, fairness and respect throughout their involvement in the federal criminal justice system, and that they receive the rights and services to which they are entitled under federal law.”
According to the DOJ:
“One of the ways that the Criminal Division achieves this goal is through the Victim Notification System (VNS), which provides free automated electronic and written notification to victims of federal crime regarding the status of their cases. The Criminal Division works with the United States Attorney’s Offices in implementing VNS and addressing the needs of crime victims during the prosecution stage of the federal court process. In a small number of criminal cases prosecuted by the Criminal Division in Washington, D.C. it will not be possible or practical to use VNS; those cases will be listed under Pending Criminal Division Cases …”.
The Pending Criminal Division Cases on the DOJ’s website lists approximately 60 enforcement actions.
However, no FCPA enforcement actions are listed.
The DOJ also maintains a Closed Criminal Division Cases page on its website which lists approximately 125 enforcement actions.
However, no FCPA enforcement actions are listed.
