Anti-Corruption Investigations & Compliance

Companies engaged in cross-border trade, investment, or projects reliant on government approvals can face acute corruption risk. Multi-jurisdictional investigations and heightened compliance expectations require experienced counsel to help guide companies to do business cleanly, and to address and remediate concerns when they arise. Bennett Jones' Anti-Corruption Investigations and Compliance team offers multi-disciplinary and skilled counsel to companies navigating corruption risk and business ethics exposure.

The Corruption of Foreign Public Officials Act (CFPOA) and provisions of the Criminal Code place strict duties on Canadian companies and their employees and agents not to engage in corrupt behaviour. The CFPOA, the Canadian equivalent to the United States Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and the UK Bribery Act, criminalizes payments of any kind and in any form to foreign public officials for the purpose of seeking to gain any business advantage. Domestic bribery offences prohibit a variety of conduct, including breaches of trust and the acceptance or offer of secret commissions. Companies face heightened risk disclosure scrutiny from securities regulatory authorities, as in recent years, Canadian securities regulators have used existing regulatory mechanisms to address corruption and related concerns.

In addition, more recent regulatory and transparency initiatives, including those related to Canada's Integrity Regime for federal procurement, and the Extractive Sector Transparency Measures Act (ESTMA), create additional business ethics and reporting obligations. Companies that fall under these regimes must navigate reporting and compliance challenges, which present the associated existential risks of losing the ability to bid on government contracts or facing quasi-criminal enforcement action.