Key takeaways

• On 8 July 2016, the UK Serious Fraud Office (“SFO”) secured approval for its second Deferred Prosecution Agreement (“DPA”) in relation to bribery and corruption offences, this time with a UK SME, wholly-owned by a U.S. company. The company cannot currently be named because of on-going related proceedings and is referred to as “XYZ” in the judgment.
• From June 2004 to June 2012, XYZ made payments and/or offers of bribes through local agents to secure contracts in foreign jurisdictions, conduct amounting to substantive corruption offences both under pre- and post-Bribery Act 2010 laws, as well as the “corporate offence” of failure to prevent bribery.
• Despite the seriousness of the conduct, XYZ’s self-reporting and co-operation meant that the court agreed that a DPA was in the interests of justice, and the approved financial terms highlight the extent to which the SFO and the courts are willing to use the flexibility of the DPA instrument to encourage and reward self-reporting and fulsome co-operation.

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