In Wadler v. Bio-Rad Labs., Inc., the Ninth Circuit narrowed the circumstances under which a plaintiff can prove a Sarbanes-Oxley Act (“SOX”) claim.
Sanford Wadler, the former general counsel of Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc., alleged that during his tenure, he raised concerns that Bio-Rad violated the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (“FCPA”) in connection with certain…
During his campaign, President Donald Trump raised uncertainty with statements that he disapproved of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. Since then, however, the Department of Justice has emphasized its continued enforcement efforts for FCPA violations.
On April 18, 2017, at the Anti-Corruption, Export Controls & Sanctions Compliance Summit, DOJ’s Acting Principal Assistant Attorney General Trevor…
On April 5, 2016, the Department of Justice had set forth a Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (“FCPA”) Enforcement Plan and Guidance on enforcement, announcing an FCPA enforcement pilot program to promote greater accountability for individuals and companies that engage in corporate crime by motivating companies to voluntarily self-disclose FCPA-related misconduct, fully cooperate with the DOJ,…
By determining that the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (“SOX” or the “Act”) preempts California’s ethical rules, the Northern District of California ruled that an in-house attorney can rely on privileged communications and confidential information to the extent they are reasonably necessary to assert a claim or defense. Wadler v. Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc., et al., No. 3:15-cv-02356…
By: David Jimenez, Bob Peabody, Paul Kelly and Shawn Kee
An official of the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) recently reported that the Agency has established three new squads of enforcement officials and stands ready to deploy them to the FBI’s three largest field offices. Jeffrey Sallet, the head of the Agency’s public corruption and…
The Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) has announced that it has entered into a cease and desist order with gun manufacturer Smith & Wesson for violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (“FCPA”) by allegedly bribing representatives of international buyers with gifts of products or money, in the hope of obtaining sales contracts for the…
In a securities filing on May 1, 2014, it was announced that Avon Products, Inc. had reached a $135 million settlement with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Department of Justice. The $135 million in fines will be paid to the SEC and the DOJ by Avon to resolve violations under the Foreign…
A few days ago, the New York Times printed a photo of an U.S. registered Bombardier Challenger private jet at the Tehran airport that turned out to be registered to the Bank of Utah, a small community bank in Ogden, Utah, that apparently holds the trust certificates for many aircraft. Later, it was reported that…
An effective anti-corruption program is important for any company covered by Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (“FCPA”), which bars American companies from bribing officials overseas.
The World Bank and its partners have released the “Anti-Corruption Ethics and Compliance Handbook for Business,” billed as a new resource developed by companies, for companies. (Available at http://www.oecd.org/g20/topics/anti-corruption/anti-corruption-ethics-and-compliance-handbook-for-business.htm…
