While corruption and bribery might be topics that we associate with Hollywood blockbusters, Mafia dons and high-level criminal activity, they’re reasonably common crimes that a wide variety of individuals can find themselves accused of. If proper precautions aren’t taken, business owners and individuals can find themselves in violation of a number of laws with potentially highly serious legal ramifications.
As a result, it’s often crucial to seek expert legal advice, both for advice in order to avoid criminal activity in the first place, and for legal advice in the case that you find yourself under investigation for corruption or bribery-related offences.
How are corruption & bribery defined?
Corruption and bribery are crimes involving the giving or receiving of bribes to individuals such as public officials and employees, or the abuse of power to cause personal gain or loss to another. The crimes are mostly covered by The Bribery Act 2010, which applies to all offences committed on or after 1st July 2011. Under the act, bribes do not have to be financial in nature; the definition of a bribe is extended to ‘other advantages’, and bribes also don’t have to be given directly for them to be considered offences.
It is also a corporate offence to fail to implement measures that aim to prevent corruption and bribery. As a result, it’s often necessary to contact a solicitor to help figure out which measures are necessary in order to ensure legal compliance.
Due to the often complicated nature of corruption and bribery investigations, they can be investigated by multiple agencies, sometimes from multiple different countries. These include the police, the Serious Fraud Office (SFO), the National Crime Agency (NCA), the US Securities Exchange Commission (SEC), and the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO).
Sentencing for corruption & bribery
The maximum sentence for corruption and bribery crimes is ten years imprisonment, however, the exact sentence you receive depends on a number of factors and will rarely be the maximum. Organisations can face unlimited fees if found guilty, making it vital that they seek legal advice as soon as possible.
What we can do to help
We can help with corruption and bribery cases in two primary ways.
The first is by providing preventative advice on measures that might be necessary to avoid allegations of bribery or corruption in the future. For certain organisations and individuals, this preventative advice might prove to be highly beneficial, in some cases even necessary to avoid legislative breaches.
Second, if an organisation or individual is under investigation or faces accusations of bribery or corruption-related crimes, we can provide legal assistance with the defence. This will often include:
- Helping you to prepare for interviews with the relevant authorities, in some cases being present during the interview itself
- Helping you prepare for trial and then representing you in court
- Taking you through the bail process
- Dealing with the appeals process if necessary
To maximise the effectiveness of the help our legal team can provide, it’s important to seek legal advice as soon as possible. The earlier in the process the better, as we can likely prevent further legal damages from occurring.
Ashcott Corruption & Bribery Defence Solicitors – Here to help you
If you’ve been charged with a corruption or bribery offence and require urgent legal advice, call us now on 0161 234 0020 (Manchester) /0203 053 8625 (London) / 07956 555979 (24 hour).
You can also contact us via our contact form and we will respond to you as soon as possible.
