FCPA and White Collar Enforcement Under the Trump Administration

The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) is the world’s first and oldest law prohibiting foreign bribery. The law is enforced by the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and over the past several years it has become one of the most frequently enforced laws against multinational companies operating in emerging markets, resulting in dozens of criminal convictions against executives and officials and over $25 billion in fines and penalties against companies.

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The Trump Administration is now looking to reshape FCPA enforcement entirely. On February 5, 2025, Attorney General Pam Bondi issued a memorandum directing prosecutors to prioritize FCPA enforcement to cases involving transnational criminal organizations or cartels, which would significantly narrow enforcement of the law. Five days later, President Trump issued an executive order calling for a 180-day “pause” altogether on FCPA enforcement to ensure the law was enforced in a manner that would advance the interests of US companies in furtherance of an “America First” foreign policy agenda. During this pause, DOJ has taken what some have characterized as differing positions in pending cases, leaving many to wonder how DOJ will enforce the law under the Trump Administration and what will an America-First approach to FCPA enforcement might look like. At the same time, foreign authorities and some state AGs have suggested that they will increase anticorruption enforcement as it gets deprioritized by the federal government. In-house counsel and compliance professionals may also ask how they should react to the evolving government priorities when confronted with potential FCPA issues.

On May 12, the Department of Justice released new policy memos detailing the Trump Administration’s approach to white collar enforcement, whistleblowers, corporate compliance monitors and significant new updates to DOJ’s Corporate Enforcement Policy and the treatment of voluntary self-disclosures. In this timely panel, V&E Partner Fry Wernick, Counsel Brian Howard, and Senior Associate Pete Thomas expanded upon their discussion of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and anticorruption enforcement to discuss how DOJ’s new memos demonstrate the Administration’s shifting white collar enforcement priorities more generally, and what these policy updates mean for you and your company.

This presentation was recorded and current as of June 5, 2025. Content viewed after this date may no longer be current.

This information is provided by Vinson & Elkins LLP for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended, nor should it be construed, as legal advice.