DOJ’s First FCPA Opinion Release in Six Years Highlights Long-Standing Principles

The Department of Justice’s first Foreign Corrupt Practices Act opinion procedure release since 2014 provides insight into the DOJ’s likely treatment of a proposed payment to a foreign subsidiary of a foreign investment bank, where that subsidiary is majority-owned by a foreign government. The Aug. 14 release confirms that even where the facts are somewhat complicated, basic FCPA principles apply and the payment would not lead to enforcement under the FCPA. The release serves both as a reminder of some of the basic components of the FCPA and that guidance is available to the public on FCPA issues through the DOJ’s opinion release program.