Page 9 - CORRUPTION LATAM

MoNTT GRoup MaGaziNE - 2024
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depend heavily on their value in the markets show great sensitivity to reputational risks and are very aware of the trend towards transparency and sustainability, showing themselves as possible agents of change.
birth of compliance
The origin of this concept is found in the United States when, as a result of several corruption scandals in 1977, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (Fcpa) was approved, the “mother” of compliance and the inspiring entity to date of European and Latin American regulations, to the point that some criminal experts believe they see compliance as the great solution to the evils of corporate crime, since the law includes corporate criminal liability for acts of corruption.
Later, in 1991, the US Sentencing Guidelines for Organizations and, finally, the Sarbanes – Oxley (SOX) law came into force, all linked to anti- corruption and economic crimes, and criminal liability of legal entities.
In the Anglo-Saxon and Northern Hemisphere countries, the concept is broad and goes beyond “regulatory requirements”, but in Latin America this company compliance is even much more restricted.
Chile was a pioneer in 2009, when for the first time a Spanish-speaking criminal code contemplated the criminal liability of legal entities, later adding the Spanish Code in 2010.
According to the expert from the Governance and Transparency Center of the IAE Business School of Argentina, María Victoria Champomier: “In Latin America it is usually directly associated as a tool for mitigating liability of legal organizations (whether criminal or administrative), and in that logic, its scope ends up being defined by the regulations of the case, which, for the most part, are limited to anti-corruption and money laundering issues. In Europe, the rules of liability of legal entities have a broad scope in terms of the different areas in which companies may be held responsible or affected, which is why in those countries compliance programs are usually more robust”.
in Latin america compLiance is
usuaLLy directLy associated as a tooL
for mitigating LiabiLity of LegaL organizations (Whether criminaL or administrative), and in that Logic,
its scope ends up being defined by the reguLations of the case, Which, for the most part, are Limited to anti-corruption and money Laundering issues. in europe, the ruLes of LiabiLity of LegaL entities have a broad scope in terms of the different areas in Which companies may be heLd responsibLe or affected, Which
is Why in those countries compLiance programs are usuaLLy more robust”.
criminal responsibility of
Legal organizations
In some cases this has extended to the social, environmental, and human rights fields and thus, compliance begins to transcend and becomes a way to create “an organizational culture committed to acting with integrity.”
In the Region, the extension of this concept in the private sector it’s happening thanks to the issuance of a series of laws made some time ago on the Criminal Liability of Legal Entities.
The liability model varies from country to country. However, in general, the systems are based on the same normative matrix dictated internationally and reach not only the company, but also its directors and legal representatives or even third parties associated with the legal corporate body. Due to their economic and political importance on the world stage, the American (Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, FCPA) and British (UK Bribery Act) anti-corruption laws have greatly influenced the legislative texts that are published in various countries.
For example, in Chile these liability laws were enacted in 2009; in Mexico, 2014; Ecuador, 2014; Bolivia, 2010 and 2017; Peru, 2016 and Argentina, 2017, plus the rules on administrative responsibility enacted in Brazil in 2013 and
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