Business Crime Quarterly Spring 2017

The potential uncertainties stemming from Brexit do not appear to have halted the development of initiatives to catch and punish those involved in business crime. Both within Europe and outside, new legislation has been enacted or proposed which continues to reinforce the anti-corruption agenda, now high on most governments’ lists of “things to do”. In the UK, the Criminal Finances Act 2017 introduces another corporate “failure to prevent” offence, this time relating to the facilitation of tax evasion. In France, the bodies needed to implement the Sapin II law are being created and their remits established. The Australian government is consulting on not one but two major proposals, involving significant changes to foreign bribery laws and the introduction of DPAs. While the U.S. Department of Justice is extending the FCPA pilot programme intended to encourage corporate self-reporting, it has also sent strong signals that a robust approach to white collar and FCPA enforcement will continue to be taken.