Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

US FEPA: Criminalising Foreign Officials’ Bribe Demands—DOJ Charging Oversight, ‘Official Act’ Hurdles, Extraterritorial Reach, and Corporate Self‑Disclosure Risks

Published on: 18 January 2024

Published by a Law360 reporter

Legal News

Article summary

FEPA

FEPA is a landmark statute that, for the first time in US history, criminalises foreign officials who solicit or receive bribes in return for carrying out an official act to secure a commercial benefit. It applies where a foreign official seeks or takes bribes from issuers or domestic concerns, or from any person whilst the official is in the US. Enacted with bipartisan, bicameral backing, the law grants federal prosecutors expansive extraterritorial authority to pursue corrupt foreign officials who demand or accept bribes. For decades, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) was the only foreign bribery regime, and it addresses the supply side of misconduct—ie, paying or offering bribes to public officials to gain a business advantage. Yet the FCPA does not authorise prosecutors to charge the other participant in a quid pro quo-style bribery scheme—the bribe-seeking official—and, until FEPA’s arrival, the Department of Justice (DOJ) has resorted to applying other statutes, such as money laundering and wire fraud, when seeking to indict corrupt foreign officials...

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