Interactive Programme Features Foremost Experts on the UK Bribery Act and the American Foreign Corrupt Practices Act

LONDON, 2 August 2011 – TransPerfect Legal Solutions (TLS), a leading provider of global legal support services, recently hosted a panel discussion in London to address the challenges and issues surrounding the newly enacted UK Bribery Act as well as comparisons to and lessons learned from the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA). The panel featured some of the industry’s foremost experts on this topic, including:

• Ilan Margolis, Coca-Cola
• Emma O’Kane, Eversheds
• Simon Hall, KPMG  
• Richard Lissack QC, Outer Temple Chambers
• Eric Elting, TransPerfect Legal Solutions
• Charlie Monteith, White & Case  

While the Bribery Act is still in its infancy, FCPA penalties have resulted in fines as high as $800M USD. According to a recent report by Steptoe and Johnson, 2010 saw the highest aggregate penalty figures on record – USD$1.8 billion. Furthermore, with 56 companies prosecuted last year (up from 51 in 2009), FCPA suits have not only increased in number, but also in terms of the penalties levied against companies who are found in violation (eight of the top ten penalties levied since FCPA’s inception occurred in 2010).

According to Eric Elting, Director of Global Legal & Patent Business for TLS, “Given the steep penalties levied against international companies under FCPA, companies with operations in the UK are now bracing themselves for the enforcement of the UK Bribery Act. Our goal is to help organizations understand the specifics of the Act and provide them with a roadmap for implementing effective compliance programmes at their organizations.”

Though the FCPA and UK Bribery Act have many similarities, panellists at the event cautioned against using an existing FCPA compliance programme as a basis for building a UK Bribery programme. “If you are going the route of a unified policy, don't start with the FCPA,” said Richard Lissack QC of Outer Temple Chambers. Panellists agreed that if you are going to use one of the two acts as the standard upon which to base your compliance programme, the UK Act is the better choice as it is the stricter of the two policies.

"I was really impressed with the whole panel,” said Peter Edworthy of Ashurst. “As the UK Bribery Act has the potential for wide interpretation, it was great to hear the panellists’ perspectives, particularly Charlie Monteith's, given his role in drafting the legislation. Overall, I found the event to be very helpful and look forward to future panel discussions offered by TransPerfect Legal Solutions."

The panel was CPD certified and included a combination of theoretical discussion and real-world experience sharing. Topics addressed by the panel included UK Bribery Act background and specifics, comparisons between the UK Bribery Act and the US FCPA, compliance and training strategies, and case studies on both effective and ineffective compliance programmes.

About TransPerfect Legal Solutions
TransPerfect Legal Solutions (TLS) is an industry leader in global legal support. Founded in 1992, TLS offers a full suite of services, including digital forensics and e-discovery, web-based hosting and review, legal staffing, language services, court reporting, and reprographics. With offices in more than 70 cities across 5 continents, TLS is a trusted partner for every Am Law 200 and Global 100 law firm, as well as the majority of Fortune 500 corporate legal departments. For more information, visit www.transperfectlegal.com.

About TransPerfect
With revenue of over $250 million, TransPerfect is the largest privately held language services provider in the world. From offices in 66 cities on 5 continents, TransPerfect offers a full range of services in over 100 languages to multinationals worldwide. With a global network of over 4,000 linguists and subject-area specialists, TransPerfect is the largest translation company to be fully ISO 9001:2008 and EN 15038:2006 certified. TransPerfect is headquartered in New York and has regional headquarters in London and Hong Kong. For more information, please visit our website at www.transperfect.com.