Due diligence

Anti-bribery due diligence can help purchasers to manage the financial, legal, reputational and ethical risk of investments and commercial transactions more effectively. The due diligence process is designed to discover, or determine the likelihood of, both current and historical bribery in the target company. It is also an important component in demonstrating compliance with international anti-corruption legislative standards.

We can help companies engaging in a merger, acquisition or investment to conduct appropriate risk-based anti-corruption due diligence on prospective targets, or to prepare themselves for such enquiries. Where adequate information is not available pre-closure, we can work quickly to carry out full due diligence to assess existing bribery or corruption in the target post-completion. Similarly, we can work with those involved in project finance transactions to identify and address the risk of bribery and corruption before and during the life of a project. We have a wealth of experience in helping companies to acquire targets and make investments in jurisdictions and industry sectors which are considered high-risk from a corruption perspective.

Liability for bribery and corruption can be incurred indirectly through the conduct of third parties, including partners, agents, consultants, distributors and others. We can help you to conduct a review of your existing and new third party counterparts to ensure that circumstances — so-called “red flags” — do not exist that should reasonably alert you to probable breaches of relevant anti-bribery or corruption legislation.

Drawing on the experience of our offices across Europe, the United States, Canada, Latin America, Asia, Australia, Africa and the Middle East, our London team is well-placed to deliver effective advice with regard to major anti-corruption regimes, including the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and UK Bribery Act.