Number: RS21925
Title: Foreign Corrupt Practices Act: A Legal Overview
Authors: Michael V. Seitzinger, American Law Division 
Abstract: The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977 was enacted principally to prevent corporate bribery of foreign officials. This act had three major parts: 1. It required the keeping by corporations of accurate books, records, and accounts; 2. It required issuers registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission to maintain a responsible internal accounting control system; and 3. It prohibited bribery by American corporations of foreign officials. For a number of years after passage of the act, Congress debated amending it in response to numerous criticisms. On August 23, 1988, the President signed into law the Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988, of which Title V is known as the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act Amendments of 1988. The Amendments maintained the three major parts of the 1977 Act, but significant changes were made. One of these changes enacted a knowing standard in order to find violations of the act. This standard was intended to encompass conscious disregard and willful blindness. The amendments provided certain defenses against finding violations of the act, such as that the gift is lawful under the laws of the foreign country and that the gift is a bona fide and reasonable expenditure or for the performance or execution of a contract with the foreign government. In 1998 the act was further amended in order to implement the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development Convention on Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International Business Transactions. These amendments expanded the scope of coverage to include some foreign persons and extended jurisdiction beyond the borders of the United States.
Pages: 6
Date: September 2, 2004