B Ethics Case Assignment 4
Week Four: Case Assignment:
Read the Case Study entitled, “Managing the Risks of Global Bribery in Business” on pages 583-593. Then, answer all three questions at the end of the case.
1) What are the differences between the provisions of the United States Foreign Corrupt Practice Act and the United Kingdom Bribery Act?
The United Kingdom Bribery Act was passed on 8 April 2010 and became effective on 1 July 2011. Until recently, international anti-corruption enforcement has been largely dominated by the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act 1977. The mainMain difference between the (FCPA) and the (UKBA) is as follows: Both the Bribery Act and the FCPA indicate it is a crime to bribe foreign (public) officials. Under the (UKBA) “foreign public official” isare defined more narrowly than under the FCPA but still include anyone who holds a foreign legislative or judicial position. The FCPA does not cover bribery on a private level, unlike the Bribery Act, although such conduct can be caught under other US legislation. The FCPA only covers active bribery, in contrast, the (UKBA) prohibits both active and passive bribery. The (UKBA) creates a strict liability corporate offence for failure to prevent bribery (as opposed to vicarious liability) subject to being able to establish that a company has “adequate procedures”. Under the FCPA, however, a company subject to US jurisdiction can be held vicariously liable for acts of its employees and agents. The UK offence extends to acts of “associated persons” which means anyone who performs services for or on behalf of the commercial organization. An individual found to have committed an offence under the (UKBA) is liable to imprisonment of up to ten years and/or to an unlimited fine. A company found guilty is subject to an unlimited fine. For offences committed under the FCPA an individual can be fined up to US$250,000 per violation and may also be given up to five years imprisonment. A company guilty under the FCPA is liable for
Read the Case Study entitled, “Managing the Risks of Global Bribery in Business” on pages 583-593. Then, answer all three questions at the end of the case.
1) What are the differences between the provisions of the United States Foreign Corrupt Practice Act and the United Kingdom Bribery Act?
The United Kingdom Bribery Act was passed on 8 April 2010 and became effective on 1 July 2011. Until recently, international anti-corruption enforcement has been largely dominated by the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act 1977. The mainMain difference between the (FCPA) and the (UKBA) is as follows: Both the Bribery Act and the FCPA indicate it is a crime to bribe foreign (public) officials. Under the (UKBA) “foreign public official” isare defined more narrowly than under the FCPA but still include anyone who holds a foreign legislative or judicial position. The FCPA does not cover bribery on a private level, unlike the Bribery Act, although such conduct can be caught under other US legislation. The FCPA only covers active bribery, in contrast, the (UKBA) prohibits both active and passive bribery. The (UKBA) creates a strict liability corporate offence for failure to prevent bribery (as opposed to vicarious liability) subject to being able to establish that a company has “adequate procedures”. Under the FCPA, however, a company subject to US jurisdiction can be held vicariously liable for acts of its employees and agents. The UK offence extends to acts of “associated persons” which means anyone who performs services for or on behalf of the commercial organization. An individual found to have committed an offence under the (UKBA) is liable to imprisonment of up to ten years and/or to an unlimited fine. A company found guilty is subject to an unlimited fine. For offences committed under the FCPA an individual can be fined up to US$250,000 per violation and may also be given up to five years imprisonment. A company guilty under the FCPA is liable for