Anti bribery and corruption compliance (sometimes called ABC compliance) is important to your organisation because non-compliance brings significant risks. It is also important because bribery and corruption disempower people and destroys economic growth and opportunity. To prevent such harm and contribute positively to the growth of society, you must have an ongoing anti-bribery and corruption compliance procedures in place. If you do not have one, you must put one in place. If you do already have one, there is nothing wrong with improving it.

Anti-Bribery and Corruption Laws and standards

This is a list of some of the laws or standards that you might have to comply with. These are some of the main ones from around the world.

What is an Anti-Bribery and Corruption Policy?

An Anti-Bribery and Corruption Policy (sometimes also called an ABC Policy) sets out an organisation’s stance on all forms of corruption. An organisation uses it to send a powerful message to its employees, other organisations, including its suppliers, and possibly regulatory authorities as well. Amongst other things, the policy sets out:

  • What bribery means, and the different forms of it,
  • What other forms of corruption there are,
  • The various anti-bribery and corruption laws that an organisation is subject to,
  • The consequences of failing to comply with those laws and with the policy, including the possibility of the organisation dismissing an employee responsible for the failure, and
  • What the organisation’s plan is for raising awareness within the organisation is, including the forms of training that it will provide to its staff.

Some Anti-Bribery and Corruption Policies also deal with an organisation’s approach to whistleblowing. We have done the same in our Anti-Bribery and Corruption Policy. Other organisations deal with whistleblowing in a separate policy – a Whistleblowing Policy. Ultimately, though, what is really important is not necessarily whether an organisation has one policy or two separate ones.  Each organisation should just ensure that they carefully approach how they deal with these policies and not simply copy and paste from other’s policies. They must appreciate the risks non-compliance versus the benefits of compliance.

How we can help you

Some organisations want to comply themselves by:

  • attending one of our public workshops (or having a private in-house one) or legal webinars,
  • reading our insights and subscribing to our newsletter,
  • getting a copy of the law and a guide, and then
  • taking the necessary action to comply themselves.

This option is best for those who want to do it themselves alone, at their own pace and keep the cost of compliance as low as possible. There are no recurring fees. You can always start here and then move to one of the other options at a later stage if necessary.

Suitable for:

  • small organisations whose primary business activity is not the processing of personal information, 
  • large organisations with a compliance function with the necessary skills, knowledge and capacity.

Some organisations want to comply with our guidance. You can achieve this by joining one of our Anti-Bribery and Corruption Compliance Programme. We empower you to comply, and guide you through practical steps. It is suitable for organisations who have an in-house legal or compliance team and who want to keep the costs of non-compliance down, by doing it themselves with guidance.

Some organisations want us to do what needs to be done to comply for them by asking us to provide specific bespoke solutions such as drafting or reviewing their Anti-Bribery and Corruption Policy. This option often complements the other two options. This is for organisations who want to go at their own pace or have individual specific needs. This is the most expensive option because we take action specifically for your organisation. Our starting point is often to conduct a gap analysis.

If you’re interested, we can quote you a fixed price (on an as-and-when-needed basis) or agree a retainer.

Our Experience

We have gathered a lot of knowledge and advised a number of small to large organisations. 

  • We empower our clients by providing easy to understand policies and agreements;
  • We have advised clients on the latest anti-bribery and corruption laws that they are subject to;
  • We have reviewed the Anti Bribery and Corruption policies of JSE-listed entities;
  • We have provided clarity and legal certainty by researching and drafting legal opinions on anti-bribery and corruption law issues; and
  • We have created an Anti Bribery and Corruption Compliance Guide that many organisations have downloaded and found useful.

We have a more comprehensive list of the matters we have worked on that is available on request.

Our Clients

Our clients are situated all over South Africa and include large software companies.

How you Benefit

  • Record your policy on this critical issue in writing by asking us to draft an effective Anti-Bribery and Corruption Policy for you.
  • Improve your existing Anti-Bribery and Corruption Policy by asking us to review it for you.
  • Find out the ten ingredients for effective compliance by downloading a free copy of our Anti-Bribery and Corruption Compliance Guide below.
  • Manage your relationships with your supply chain by asking us to review or draft contractual clauses requiring Anti-Bribery and Corruption Compliance for you.
  • Raise awareness about your organisation’s anti-bribery and corruption practices by asking to provide you with a template email to send to your staff or your supply chain.
  • Educate your staff on anti-bribery and corruption compliance by asking us to provide training and to advise you on the best practices you need to have in place in your organisation.
  • Facilitate effective and responsible whistleblowing within your organisation and eliminate corruption by asking us to provide you with a Whistleblowing Policy.
  • Manage the risk of potential acts of non-compliance and any actual event of non-compliance by asking us to draft you an Incident Response Policy.
  • Subscribe to our Newsletter to stay up-to-date with the latest developments in anti-bribery and corruption laws, rules, codes and standards, including any change to them.
  • Reduce the risks of non-compliance (like damage to your brand) by focusing your efforts.
  • Reduce your overall cost of compliance by doing it yourself (with our guidance) and embedding an ethical culture in your organisation.
  • Fast track your efforts by accessing deep knowledge, expertise and experience.
  • Ensure everything is privileged from authorities by engaging with Michalsons who are independent professional legal advisers.

Get a free ABC Compliance Guide

Our free guide:

  • is written in plain language and easy to understand,
  • covers the key considerations for organisations to take into account in their Anti-Bribery and Corruption Compliance Programmes, and
  • is in PDF format.

Simply fill in the form below and we’ll email you your copy of the free guide.

Anti-Bribery and Corruption Compliance Guide (Automatic)

What are the Penalties for Non-Compliance?

The legal penalties that regulators (such as the United States Securities Exchange Commission) can impose on corrupt persons are quite severe and could include:

  • Sentences up to a maximum of life imprisonment,
  • Civil enforcement actions,
  • Having to return any property or money, for example, that the persons have obtained through corruption, and
  • Inclusion on the Register for Tender Defaulters and being prevented from entering into lucrative public sector contracts.

The other serious implications include:

  • Fines and possibly imprisonment,
  • Reputational damage,
  • Having to defend against lawsuits for breach of anti-bribery and corruption contractual clauses, and
  • Losing customers (and employees) and being unable to attract new ones.

But your main motivation for complying with anti-bribery and corruption laws should be to protect people and our society from the serious harm that corrupt activities cause.

Interested?

If you are interested, please complete the form on the right or enquire now. We will contact you to find out more about your requirements and give you a quote.