Polaris FCPA compliance, risk, and investigations
Polaris brings over 50 years of global security expertise to FCPA compliance: risk assessments, due diligence, investigations, and a case study on real-world remediation.
With over 50 years of global security and investigations experience, Polaris is an industry leader in the corporate risk management space. In those decades of industry experience, the Polaris team has developed a global asset matrix that enables us to successfully harness local resources in over 85 countries — a vital element of any successful FCPA compliance and security program.
Polaris' FCPA experience offers a range of relevant examples, from shorter inquiries into allegations against rogue employees or vendors, to multi-year investigations assessing every level of a client's internal compliance and approval procedures. In addition to post-action expertise, Polaris has significant experience with FCPA violation prevention, mitigation, investigations and management.
Understanding Your Risks
FCPA Vulnerability Assessment
Though FCPA incidents have caught major companies off-guard, these incidents can be anticipated with proper attention and analysis. Polaris will help identify patterns of FCPA risk in your industry or location, working with you to address the vulnerabilities most common in companies like yours — before any misdeeds actually occur.
Historical Risk Audit & Self-Reporting
To better account for present or future risks, you need an understanding of your risk history. Polaris will analyze your books and records for subtle red flags that may have gone undetected, giving you the option to remediate internally or self-report any issues — resulting in a more favorable legal outcome. Known prior incidents will also be re-assessed, to ensure that affected or nearby facilities have progressed their compliance program.
Sub-Contractor or Partner Due Diligence
You're only as compliant as your least compliant partner; it is vital that you can trust your business partners. Polaris will conduct a pre-contract screening to reduce your liability exposure and maximize your compliance, with deep-dive due diligence investigations customized to focus on areas of particular concern or industry risk.
Responding to FCPA Incidents
Sophisticated Investigative Methods
Polaris' methods are practiced and practical, delivering real-world solutions keyed to your needs. Our FCPA capabilities are far-reaching, with approaches including
- due-diligence inquiries into relevant personnel
- surveillance
- exhaustive reviews of public and private records
- deep & dark web screenings
- advanced online media analyses
Global Reach, Local Delivery
FCPA cases are global in nature, demanding strategies built on international assets and experts who understand the varying political, legal and social dynamics of their target countries. Polaris' network includes on-the-ground personnel in over 85 nations, all equipped with a practical understanding of their respective regions.
Courtroom-Ready Intelligence
Uncovering information is only half the battle, as the legal complexity of FCPA matters requires investigators that can both find and frame intelligence with an eye to how information is used in the courtroom. Polaris' FCPA investigations are quarterbacked by investigators with legal backgrounds, to maximize the efficacy of our findings.
Case Study
Anti-Corruption Program Compliance Audits enable companies to uncover and remediate nascent issues — before those issues rise to the level of criminal activity, civil liability or regulatory action.
During one such audit, Polaris and strategic partner Ethics Suite reviewed financial information for a company in South America to ensure that expenditures for government-related services were accurately recorded in the company's books and records. The team analyzed all disbursements, and was troubled to find multiple red flags — namely, keywords for potentially improper payments. Recorded reimbursement requests included cash payments to police officials for "police motivation." The invoices presented for reimbursement, moreover, did not match the expense report's descriptions, instead listing "security barriers."
These discrepancies demanded an in-depth investigation into the company's payments to government entities. This investigation, in turn, revealed multiple instances of the entity's security staff requesting large police presences, to ensure the safety of those in their organization in more drastic situations. The security team's swift decisions left the company vulnerable to possible regulatory action, and, as such, Polaris and Ethics Suite recommended sweeping policy and procedure changes, swift remedial action with employees and personnel training sessions on all policy and procedure changes.
Ultimately, the company adopted all of these recommended changes. The audit, and the subsequent investigation, informed the company's decision not to self-report. They cited their confidence that they are armed with all the information they need to respond to a regulatory request on these issues, should one occur.