BUSINESS IN THE MIDDLE KINGDOM: AN EVALUATION OF CFPOA RISK.

Under Canada's Corruption of Foreign Public Officials Act (CFPOA), Canadian individuals and corporations that pay bribes to public officials abroad may be subject to criminal liability at home. This article analyzes the CFPOA by focusing on specific risk factors which may be confronted by Canadian corporations operating in China. While these risk factors have been identified in American Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) prosecutions and American academic commentary, this article asks whether Canadian companies may face a similar scope of liability under the CFPOA. To answer this question, the article looks to three main risk factors from the Chinese business environment, evaluating whether they are likely to generate CFPOA liability. Given the paucity of case law in this area, the analysis largely relies on a comparative analysis of the text and interpretation of the CFPOA versus the FCPA. Ultimately, the article finds that these China-related risk factors expand the potential scope of CFPOA liability for Canadian corporations in China. Additionally, some general lessons are offered on how the analysis performed here for China-specific risk may have wider applicability and can be used to inform lawyers' advice to corporations devising anti-bribery strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]