New FCPA Guide Signals Laxer Successor Liability Approach

The U.S. Department of Justice's and U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's recently updated resource guide to the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act signals a potential relaxation of stringent requirements that have previously been applied to successor liability in mergers and acquisitions.

In contrast to both a 2008 attorney general opinion and the prior iteration of the resource guide, the update focuses on the timeliness and thoroughness of post-acquisition due diligence and emphasizes the potential value that mergers and acquisitions can have in bringing more vigorous compliance programs to newly acquired companies, acknowledging that, in some cases, preacquisition diligence can be nearly impossible.

Originally published in Law360; reprinted with permission.