Brazil in the Fight against Transnational Bribery:Lessons from the Odebrecht and Petrobras Cases Brasil en la Lucha contra el Soborno Trasnacional: Lecciones de los casos Odebrecht y Petrobras

Resumen

With the expansion of globalization throughout the world during the 20th century, transnational bribery practices increased as more and more financial and commercial transactions were conducted across borders. Transnational bribery refers to illegal payments to foreign government officials to obtain or retain business. In Latin America, Brazil is the leading country in resolving transnational bribery cases, having concluded several cases, including one with substantial penalties in 2016. The study question focuses on the factors that may explain, from a legal point of view, Brazil's performance in such resolution of transnational bribery cases. The analysis of the resolution of cases in Brazil shows that several main factors explain Brazil's success. In fact, Brazilian authorities are involved in a coordinated resolution with other authorities, such as the U.S. authorities. This was the scenario in some well-known bribery cases, such as the Odebrecht and Petrobras cases. In a coordinated resolution, the authorities justify their actions on their own legal grounds, use tools to resolve cases without having to go to trial, through negotiations, and create a final agreement that allows the fine paid by the legal entity to be divided among the countries involved.

__________________________________________________

Fecha de actualización: 15 de enero de 2023