Corruption and Bribery

The current landscape

The Bribery Act 2010 was the first major piece of legislation which held companies liable for dishonest acts of employees and saw the introduction of ‘failure to prevent’ offences. A few years later the Criminal Finances Act 2017 created the offence of failure to prevent tax evasion. Most recently the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 is intended to reform corporate liability for economic crime, holding corporations liable in their own right for economic crime committed by employees.

The Bribery Act

The Corruption and Bribery landscape changed dramatically following the Bribery Act 2010 which came into force in 2011. The legislation followed international pressure on the UK and other countries to introduce tougher laws. And, in the years since the legislation was enacted, we hear repeated references to the need for the UK to maintain its reputation as a ‘safe place to do business’.

As recently as September 2024, Serious Fraud Office Chief Capability Office, Freya Grimwood is quoted as saying;

‘By investigating bribery and corruption, we ensure UK companies abide by the rule of law and conduct business cleanly and fairly in the UK and abroad.

The UK Government has made clear that economic growth is a top priority. Our role in both the pursuit and prevention of economic crime is a critical component in delivering that growth’.

An allegation of bribery or corruption can have an extremely damaging effect upon a company or individual and our specialists have extensive experience in defending allegations of corruption, bribery and serious fraud.

Olliers Solicitors

We are ranked as a Top Tier Crime and Fraud Firm by the Legal 500 2025 as well as Chambers Directory 2025. We are a Times Top 200 law firm. We are the current Manchester Legal Awards Crime Team of the Year, an award we have won seven times since 2011 in the space of just over 10 years.

We have a team of over 25 defence lawyers. Eight of our Partners are recommended Legal 500 lawyers, including Matt Corn, Gareth Martin, Toby Wilbraham and Richard Cornthwaite. Our Managing Director, Matthew Claughton is a recent Legal 500 Northern Powerhouse Criminal Lawyer of the Year.

Bribery Act Offences

Provisions of the Bribery Act impact on businesses large and small and cover the following offences:

• Failure of a commercial organisation to prevent bribery is an offence committed by a business unless it can show that it had “adequate procedures” in place to prevent this conduct.
• Without anti-corruption measures in place a commercial organisation can be guilty of an offence committed without the knowledge in those involved in the management of the business.
• Prosecution of Senior Officers of a company can take place in circumstances where an offence of bribery took place with the involvement of a Senior Officer.
• Bribery of Foreign Public Officials relates to where the payer intends to influence a foreign public official with a view to gaining or retaining business.
• Corporate Hospitality can also be a risky area and the level of appropriate corporate hospitality always needs to be considered so as to avoid falling foul of the legislation.
• Facilitation Payments may be demanded by officials to expedite performance of roles and duties such as the issuing of permits or speeding up of shipments. Where these payments are made risk of criminal prosecution arises.

Companies need to ensure that they have adequate anti-bribery measures in place, so as to prevent an act of bribery being committed on behalf of the company and afford the organisation a defence.

The Serious Fraud Office

The Serious Fraud Office has committed significant resources to bribery and corruption and bodies who believe persons associated with them have been involved in offences of bribery and corruption may consider “self-reporting” with the aim of negotiating a Deferred Prosecution Agreement (DPA). The SFO may issue Section 2 notices under the Criminal Justice Act 1988 requiring individuals or businesses to deliver documentation to the SFO or attend a compulsory interview.

Dawn Raids

The nature of a bribery investigation could mean that companies and individuals are attended upon without notice by the investigating authorities. Olliers have extensive experience of dealing with so-called dawn raids.

Related content

• Bribery Act 2010 – Preventing Bribery in the Workplace
• Bribery Act 2010 – Is Your Business At Risk?
• Bribery Act 2010 – Adequate Anti Bribery Procedures Must Be In Place By July 2011
• Deferred prosecution agreements
• Direction of travel at the Serious Fraud Office

Contact a Corruption and Bribery Lawyer (London & Manchester)

If you need to discuss any allegation of corruption or bribery or require assistance with an anti-bribery strategy, contact Matthew Claughton by email at matthewclaughton@olliers.com, call 0161 827 7010 or complete the form below.