Political Law

One of the defendants in the failed Africa sting FCPA prosecution was Mark Morales. He worked for a military ordnance maker that was part of the Allied Defense Group.

I’ve argued in this series (see links to the prior posts below) and in this paper that FCPA enforcement should benefit the victims of bribery -- namely, the citizens of the countries in which the bribery occurs. Congress intended the statute to do this very thing, and it should do so now.

Job Title: General Counsel Company: TheStreet Location: New York, NY

Frederic Bourke is now an inmate of Englewood Camp, a minimum-security facility in the southwest suburbs of Denver, Colorado, in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains.

According to online allegations, Tao Mingzhe, deputy director of Shenzhen (Guangdong Province) People’s Hospital’s anesthesiology department, took bribes worth millions of dollars from drug and medical device companies, and has two mistresses. Pharma companies allegedly paid for Tao to go on sightseeing trips and attend symposiums. He is being investigated by anti-corruption authorities. The hospital said Tao is still at his post. http://fanfu.people.com.cn

Wal-Mart said today it spent $73 million on FCPA-related expenses during the first quarter of 2013. It had budgeted $40 million to $45 million.

This is National Police Week, when Americans thank our local, state, and federal law enforcement professionals for risking their lives to keep us safe.

Bernie"Ecclestone serves as president and CEO of Formula One (Photo courtesy of Wikipedia)Formula One boss Bernie Ecclestone will be charged soon in Germany for bribing a banker to gain access to his bank's F1 shares, a German newspaper has reported.

I’ve argued in this series that we should think of corruption generally, and bribery specifically, as violating human rights -- specifically the rights of the citizens of the countries in which bribery occurs. (And make no mistake, this includes the U.S.).

Election Law Blog has posted a copy of the report here.  The report is fairly limited in scope compared to the revelations that have been made in the press this week.  The report, however, is worth a read since it raises new questions that the Congress and Department of Justice will need to sort out. Listed below are some of the articles discussing the IG Report and other developments: USA Today, IRS approved liberal groups while Tea party in limbo Washington Post, IG Report: ‘Inappropriate criteria’ stalled IRS approvals of conservative groups POLITICO, The IRS wants you — to share everything POLITICO, 5 takeaways from IRS Report The New York Times, IRS says counsel did not tell Treasury of Tea Party scrutiny CNN, Source: Two rogue workers principally behind IRS targeting of conservative groups The Hill, Top Dem tax writer Levin calls for IRS officials to resign The Hill, Obama summons top Treasury officials to discuss IRS scandal