This session will explore the evolution of Deferred Prosecution Agreements (DPAs) and their increasingly important role in resolving cases of alleged corporate criminal misconduct.

The United States authorities have long deployed DPAs to resolve corporate criminal enforcement actions under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, whose broad extra-territorial reach captures the activities of multinationals operating in Asia. The United Kingdom authorities have followed suit, with four DPAs already entered into under their Bribery Act; another long-arm statute which also enables the UK authorities to potentially pursue multinationals’ operating in Asia. The UK Serious Fraud Office’s mammoth DPA with Rolls-Royce in January 2017 is regarded as a watershed moment in UK anti-corruption enforcement. France has also introduced DPAs, announcing it’s first in December 2017.

Legislation is presently before the Australian parliament that contemplates DPAs being added to the toolbox of Australian prosecutors. In Asia, following the high-profile case in December 2017 involving Keppel Corp, Singapore introduced DPAs in early 2018 for corporate corruption and money laundering cases.

The panel will discuss key aspects of the various DPA regimes with case studies, assess their merits and shortfalls, and consider what the future holds for resolving corporate criminal misconduct in the region.