We attended the Andean Summit in Colombia 23-24 October organized by the Canadian Institute. This conference brought together experts in anti-corruption compliance and white-collar crime investigations for engaging discussions. Our partner Sandra Orihuela was co-chair at the event.
The program highlighted the fact that Latin American countries have been intensifying their efforts to abate corruption by enacting new legislation, creating new anti-corruption authorities, participating in multi-jurisdictional enforcement actions, multilateral conventions and working groups aimed at combating regional and global corruption. These efforts were discussed alongside the implications and lessons learned from the most significant corruption crises in the marketplace and political scandals that the region is currently facing, such as:
- The corruption notebooks – Argentina
- Recordings revealing systemic corruption in the judicial, executive and legislative branches – Peru
- The Odebrecht scandal – Brasil, Peru, Colombia, Argentina, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Guatemala, Panama, Mexico.
Furthermore, the program included practical panels on the “ins and outs” of an effective compliance program, internal investigations, risk mitigation, enhancing cultural awareness, third-party screening and compliance monitoring.
Speakers included Rodrigo Janot, Former Attorney General of Brazil, Néstor Humberto Martínez Neira, Attorney General of Colombia, and Christopher Cestaro, Assistant Chief of the FCPA Unit at the U.S. Department of Justice.
The program represented the intersection of contemporary topics in anti-corruption compliance and enforcement with the practicalities of doing business in different industries and locales in the Latin American region.
Thank you all for your participation and we look forward to seeing you on the next edition of this important event for the anti-corruption, compliance and enforcement community.