GOING AFTER GRAFT

摘要

The foreign corruptPractices Act, a 1977 law targeting businesses that bribe foreign officials, spent the early part of this decade in a slumber. In 2000, there wasn't a single prosecution, and in 2006, the Justice Departmentwon just $18 million in penalties. Now the law has come roaring back to life, with more than $1 billion in fines this year alone. Recent high-profile cases include guilty pleas from fuel-concern Innospec, for paying kickbacks in Iraq to German automaker Daimler AG; and Jack Stanley, the head of energy consultancy KBR, for bribing Nigerian officials to secure billions in natural-gas contracts.