UK-Based biopharmaceutical company AstraZeneca agreed to pay the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) $5.5 million to settle claims that its Chinese and Russian subsidiaries had made improper payments to state-controlled health care providers in violation of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA).
In an order released earlier this week, the SEC outlined both the
AstraZeneca will pay $5.5M to the Securities and Exchange Commission to settle claims that it violated the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act by making improper payments to state controlled health care providers in China and Russia.
Background
The SEC complaint provides that the staff of AstraZeneca’s foreign
subsidiaries bribed health care providers in China and Russia
Earlier this year, the US Department of Justice announced a one-year pilot program under which US corporations could mitigate their own liability for violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) by voluntarily self-disclosing FCPA violations within their organization, in addition to fully cooperating with DOJ investigations and taking steps to remediate any misconduct. Skeptics,
The Louis Berger Group, Inc., a subsidiary of global engineering and construction company, Berger Group Holdings, Inc., recently brought an action against former executive Richard J. Hirsch who pled guilty to violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) in 2015.
The suit raises breach of fiduciary duty claims against Hirsch stemming from his involvement
On April 5, 2016, the U.S. Department of Justice announced a significant increase in its efforts to enforce the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA).
The DOJ’s three-step plan increases personnel dedicated to investigating FCPA violations, fosters international cooperation and coordination in ongoing investigations and further incentivizes companies to self-disclose FCPA issues.
We invite you to
On Monday, May 9, a large collection of data behind the Panama Papers was released by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ). The ICIJ published a searchable database that strips away the secrecy of more than 200,000 offshore entities created in 21 jurisdictions
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has agreed to a $28 million settlement with software producer PTC, Inc. following allegations of bribes paid to Chinese officials between 2006 and 2011 in violation of the Foreign Corrupt Practice Act (FCPA).
In the administrative proceeding (No. 3-17118), the SEC alleged that two of PTC’s Chinese subsidiaries bribed
SCS Corporation, Ltd. (SCS), a unit of Houston oil and gas drilling company Hyperdynamics Corporation (“Hyperdynamics”), has filed parallel actions in the Southern District of Texas (4:16-cv-00076) and before the American Arbitration Association against two partners who SCS alleges used an FCPA investigation into Hyperdynamics as a pretext for breaching their joint exploration agreement.
SCS
Although the number of FCPA enforcement actions by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Department of Justice (DOJ) are down in 2015, a recent report indicates the the third quarter saw twice as many FCPA claims resolved as the first two quarters of 2015 combined.
There does not appear to be a clear single
In September 2015, Avon Products, Inc. reached a $62 million settlement in a class action brought by investors alleging securities fraud. Specifically, the investors claimed that Avon intentionally mislead investors about the company’s compliance with the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act which, in turn, artificially inflated Avon’s stock price.
The class action followed Avon’s payment of