The Bribery Act 2010 (‘the Act’) reformed the criminal law relating to allegations of bribery in the UK and provided a consolidated scheme of bribery offences both in the UK and abroad.
The Act replaced offences at common law with two general offences. First: the offering, promising or giving of an advantage (i.e. bribing another person). Second: the requesting, agreeing to receive or accepting of an advantage (i.e. being bribed). The Act also created a discrete offence of bribery of a foreign public official and a new offence for failure on the part of commercial organisations to prevent bribery.
Territorial Scope
Significantly, at Section 12, the Act was given extra-territorial reach, meaning that an act of bribery does not need to take place in the UK for the Act to apply and for proceedings to be commenced in the UK, as long as the act of bribery would constitute an offence in the UK if done in the UK and the person has a ‘close connection’ with the UK.
In respect of commercial organisations, this extra-territorial reach is especially problematic as it ensnares UK companies regardless of where the act of bribery takes place. Somewhat mitigating the impact of this extra-territorial reach, Section 7(2) of the Act provides an explicit defence for a commercial organisation to show it had in place adequate procedures designed to prevent persons associated with it from committing any of the Bribery offences. Statutory guidance has been issued by the UK government in relation to ‘adequate procedures’.
Crime in England and Wales: year ending March 2024
According to the Office for National Statistics, in the year to end the of March 2024 there were some 133 corruption offences of which 115 related to misconduct in a public office. Only 1 related to failings on the part of commercial organisations to prevent bribery.
Punishment
The maximum punishment for a person who is guilty of bribery and corruption is a term of imprisonment of 10 years. In the case of a commercial organisation the maximum punishment is an unlimited fine.
Defending Allegations of Bribery & Corruption
The key to defending Bribery & Corruption allegations is early and ongoing expert intervention. In practical terms, this invariably involves deploying a multi-disciplinary team of litigators and consultants including investigators, compliance experts, specialist barristers, forensic accountants and industry experts. A proactive approach is key, particularly for commercial organisations who bear the burden of proving the adequacy of their procedures.
How can we help?
We can deploy a multi-disciplinary team of expert criminal and civil lawyers to advise on the design and implementation of compliance programmes, conduct internal and external investigations, negotiate deals including deferred prosecution agreements and devise and execute bespoke litigation strategies.
We benefit from a wealth of in-house expertise in several disciplines including criminal defence, commercial disputes, compliance and regulatory. We also enjoy enduring relationships with leading consultants including compliance experts, investigators, specialist barristers, forensic accountants and industry experts.
Free Initial Discussion
If you have been notified of an allegation of Bribery & Corruption or an impending investigation or prosecution into allegations of Bribery & Corruption it is critical that you contact us as soon as possible.
