The High Court of Australia has agreed to hear an appeal by the Crown about how penalties for foreign bribery are calculated. In particular, the appeal will consider how the ‘value of the benefit’ of foreign bribery under the federal Criminal Code is measured – is the maximum penalty to be measured by the gross Continue reading

It has been an eventful year for the Bribery Prevention Network (BPN). Over the course of 2022, we have concluded our first two-year phase, held a series of launch events around the country, welcomed new representatives to our Steering Committee and almost doubled the BPN’s online audience. This December quarterly update from the BPN highlights some Continue reading

Australia’s ‘Second Cycle’ report on implementation of UN Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC) obligations relating to corruption prevention and asset recovery has been published on the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) website.  The review made 13 recommendations to strengthen Australia’s implementation of the UNCAC, including in relation to access to beneficial ownership and director Continue reading

The Bribery Prevention Network featured in the Australian Public Sector Anti-Corruption Conference 2022, held recently in Sydney. The Bribery Prevention Network was represented by James Campbell (Partner, Disputes and Investigations, Allens) alongside Gemma Aiolfi, Head of Compliance at the Basel Institute of Governance and Tim Robinson (Chief Compliance Officer, BHP), to share their insights about Continue reading

Nominations are now open for individuals from civil society, academia and the private sector to fill up to 9 positions on Australia’s Open Government Forum. The Forum will help develop, monitor and drive implementation of Australia’s National Action Plan and raise awareness about open government as part of the Open Government Partnership. The Open Government Continue reading

The Australian Government is seeking comments on the design features for the first phase of a publicly available beneficial ownership register. The Government has committed to introducing the register as part of its multinational tax integrity package. A ‘beneficial owner’ is a natural person who ultimately owns or controls an entity, legal vehicle, or asset. Continue reading