- Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA): In 2023, the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) obtained over $520 million in total fines and penalties related to Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) violations, making 2023 one of the top dozen highest grossing years with regard to enforcement penalties in the nearly 50-year history of the FCPA. Foreign governments and other branches of the U.S. government recovered an additional nearly $50 million in global settlement amounts related to those FCPA enforcement actions. In addition, the U.S. government announced charges against 11 individuals for FCPA and FCPA-related conduct.Also, in 2023, the SEC issued a record-breaking whistleblower award of $279 million, which was related to an FCPA corporate enforcement case settled four years ago.
- Corporate Transparency Act: Effective Jan. 1, 2024, the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) and its implementing regulations mandate that certain U.S. legal entities and foreign entities registered to do business in the U.S. report their beneficial ownership information (BOI) to the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN).This sweeping change to corporate formation rules will provide federal authorities with a new tool to investigate money laundering and other illicit uses of the U.S. financial system, bringing the United States in line with at least 30 other countries that have implemented some form of central registry of BOI. BOI information will be available not only to federal law enforcement but also, under defined circumstances, to state, tribal, and foreign law enforcement. Penalties for willful violations of the CTA are punishable by civil penalties of $500 per day and up to two years' imprisonment.
- Foreign Extortion Prevention Act: On Dec. 22, 2023, President Biden signed into law the Foreign Extortion Prevention Act (FEPA) as part of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2024. Passed with bipartisan support, FEPA criminalizes the "demand side" of the FCPA, making it a crime, among other things, for foreign officials to solicit or receive bribes from U.S. persons or companies.The legislation follows President Biden's identification of anti-corruption enforcement as a national security priority.
- Health Care/Department of Justice: On Oct. 4, 2023, Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco announced in a speech at the Society of Corporate Compliance and Ethics' 22nd Annual Compliance & Ethics Institute that the DOJ adopted a new department-wide Mergers & Acquisitions Safe Harbor Policy (the Policy). While the speech focused mostly on, and highlighted, noncompliance matters in connection with non-health-care transactions, the announcement has generated great interest among companies involved in acquisition of health-care-related entities, especially where federal payors are part of the target business.
- AI/Compliance: As regulators worldwide adopt rules for AI implementation, they are using the emerging technology to gather and analyze mass quantities of data to uncover patterns, insights, and connections for use in their fraud detection and investigations efforts.
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