Foreign Corrupt Practices Act enforcement has historically been robust as the calendar year ends.
Will it be even more robust this year and the first few weeks of January prior to the change in administrations on January 20th?
Perhaps.
After all, DOJ and SEC officials often seemingly “grade” themselves on the number of enforcement actions brought and the amount of money secured through settlements. At least when many of these same attorneys join law firms, these figures are often mentioned in law firm press releases.
Between the approximate 60 day time period of Trump winning the Presidency in November 2016 and inauguration day in January 2017 there were nine FCPA enforcement actions – an unusually large number of enforcement actions for such a short amount of time.
- JPMorgan (Nov. 17, 2016)
- Odebrecht/Braskem (Dec. 20, 2016)
- Teva (Dec. 21, 2016)
- General Cable (Dec. (Dec. 28, 2016)
- Mondelez Int’l (Jan. 6, 2017)
- Zimmer/Biomet (Jan. 12, 2017)
- SQM (Jan. 13, 2017)
- Orthofix (Jan. 18, 2017)
- Las Vegas Sands (Jan. 19, 2017)
The FCPA enforcement action against Las Vegas Sands – one day prior to a change in administration – was particularly intriguing as Sheldon Adelson (company founder, chairman and chief executive officer) was a major Republican contributor.
The noticeable escalation in enforcement activity during the last approximate 60 days of the Obama administration was not limited to FCPA enforcement. (See this Wall Street Journal article titled “Obama Administration Races To Finish Probes, Wring Payments From Firms” noting that in one week in January 2017 the administration reached settlements worth approximately $20 billion).
What about the approximate 60 day time period of Biden winning the Presidency in November 2020 and inauguration day in January 2021?
Vitol (Dec. 3, 2020)
Deutsche Bank (Jan. 8, 2021)
FCPA enforcement activity was substantially less, but then again many activities in mid-2020 – 2021 were abnormal due to COVID.
What will the next 60 days hold?
Time will time.