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19 February 2009 / William Jacobson , Lista M Cannon , Alex Rene
Issue: 7357 / Categories: Features , Public , Criminal , Constitutional law , Commercial
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The UK's enforcement of foreign bribery laws is long overdue, say Alex Rene, Lista Cannon & William Jacobson

In the course of just a few weeks in the autumn of 2008, the UK brought two separate foreign bribery cases to conclusion—the first such cases brought by UK authorities—perhaps signalling a marked change in policy by the UK authorities.

First, in late September, the Overseas Anti-Corruption Unit (OACU) of the City of London Police announced that both an employee of CBRN Team Ltd (CBRN), a UK security consulting firm, and an official of Uganda pled guilty to bribery charges stemming from a scheme in which CBRN paid the Ugandan official in order to receive a contract to advise the Ugandan presidential guard. While the CBRN employee received a suspended sentence, the Ugandan official was sentenced to 12 months’ imprisonment.

Second, on 6 October 2008, the UK’s Serious Fraud Office (SFO), in a case the SFO was investigating for evidence of foreign bribery, announced that it had reached

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