Corruption Crime & Compliance

OFAC is off to a fast start in 2019.  It has implemented enhanced Venezuela sanctions, designated PDVSA as a Specially Designated National, and brought four separate enforcement actions with important lessons learned for sanctions compliance. In this Episode, Michael Volkov reviews OFAC's actions and outlines important sanctions compliance lessons learned.

The corporate governance landscape is littered with companies that have suffered major legal and reputational damage as a result of failure to promote and protect a safe workplace environment.  Companies have failed to hold offenders accountable for sexual misconduct and violation of applicable legal and code requirements. The #MeToo era has resulted in increased reporting and monitoring of corporate culture, workplace safety.  One important aspect of an appropriate Speak Up culture and creating a safe workplace environment is the proper and timely handling of investigations of possible sexual assaults and harassment. In this Episode, Michael Volkov discusses the best practices for investigating allegations of sexual assault and harassment in the #MeToo Era.

The General Data Protection Regulation 2016/679 ("GDPR") was a watershed moment in data and privacy compliance.  The new law and regulations applies to all companies and persons within the European Union and the European Economic Area.  Since its effective date, May 25, 2018, enforcement of the new law has begun.  In the first year, compliance and enforcement practitioners have identified important issues and trends for companies and compliance professionals. Join Michael Volkov, CEO of The Volkov Law Group, as he reviews important enforcement and compliance trends in this important area.  

The corporate world has been rocked by major governance failures surrounding #MeToo incidents and complaints.  Recently, Google suffered global walkouts by employees who were upset by Google's payment of lucrative severance packages to senior executives forced to resign because of sexual misconduct issues, and a culture of sexual misconduct that included 48 sexual misconduct incidents resulting in the departure/termination of employees. Companies have to address this issue by promoting an ethical culture that provides workplace security, encourages reporting of such allegations, timely investigation and resolution of such allegations, and consistent discipline and termination actions designed to promote organizational justice. In this episode, Michael Volkov, CEO of The Volkov Law Group, discusses proactive strategies to mitigate a company's organizational risks in this area.

Companies involved in export and import activities face a variety of risks from sanctions and export controls created by a complex maze of regulations and oversight from the Department of State, Department of Treasury and the Department of Commerce.  With the increasing complexity of sanctions regimes, companies have to devote significant attention and resources to implement an effective trade compliance program. In this episode, Michael Volkov discusses strategies and requirements for trade compliance programs.

Global prosecutors and regulators continued to increase anti-money laundering enforcement and regulatory actions.  Global and US regulators have increasingly focused on beneficial ownership and transparency requirements.  In 2018, FinCEN's Customer Due Diligence rule went into effect. US prosecutors also brought several significant AML criminal prosecutions against large banks; the SEC has increased AML enforcement as part of reviews of internal controls.  Regulators brought enforcement actions against financial institutions and gatekeepers, including compliance officers. In this episode, Michael Volkov discusses 2018 AML enforcement actions and compliance trends.

The Justice Department reported its 2018 fraud statistics showing $2.8 billion in recoveries under the False Claims Act.  While this number is staggering, fiscal year 2018 recoveries were down from than $500 million from fiscal year 2017.  Nonetheless, companies in the healthcare, defense and financial industries continue to face significant False Claims Act risks. In this episode, Michael Volkov interviews Jessica Sanderson, Of Counsel, at The Volkov Law Group, who specializes in False Claims Act litigation and compliance. Jessica can be reached at jsanderson@volkovlaw.com.  

Companies involved in the export and import of defense products and services face significant risks surrounding compliance with the International Traffic in Arms (ITAR) statute and regulations.  The US State Department's Directorate of Defense Control (DDTC) tightly regulates the defense industry and aggressively enforces ITAR rules and regulations. In this episode, Michael Volkov interviews Colleen Hurson, Of Counsel at The Volkov Law Group, who specializes in ITAR compliance and enforcement matters.  Colleen can be reached at churson@volkovlaw.com.  

The SEC and the Justice Department closed their respective 2018 books with resolution of three separate enforcement actions: Polycom, Eletrobras and Two Former Officers of Panasonic Avionics. In this episode, Michael Volkov reviews and discusses important lessons learned from these three separate FCPA enforcement actions.

The Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Asset Control ("OFAC") had a busy year -- the first half of 2018 was dedicated to re-imposing the Iran Sanctions Program and updating the Russia Sanctions Program. In the second half of the year, OFAC resumed its pace for enforcement actions. In this episode, Michael Volkov reviews OFAC enforcement actions and sanctions regulations for 2018.