The Bribery Act Guidance and Training UK -, the significant Act

The Bribery Act Guidance and Training in UK came into effect from 1 July 2011 and is not mainly employment law legislation, but it makes it important for business folks to know the significances of the new law. The most significant aspect of the law for employers is the new corporate bribery offence which is ascertained in section 7 of the Act that representative of a relevant commercial organisation is at fault of an offence under this section. If a person related with a company intends to bribe another person to receive or continue business or retain an advantage in the context of business is an offence.

This signifies that where an employee bribes a business associates on behalf of their employer (whether with your knowledge or not), the employer will be held responsible under the Act. The penalties under Section 7 offence are severe: unlimited fines are likely and the employer forced out from contracting with public bodies. In addition there is likely to be substantial reputational harm as a result of a bribery investigation.

Employers can also be held guilty of the direct offences if found offering or receiving a bribe, these will invite harder offense if the prosecutors establish the link. The key way in which employers can annul liability under the Act is to show they had adequate procedures in place to deal with bribery. This isn't only a defense to the Section 7 offence, but having procedures in place may perhaps lead the prosecutor to determine not to carry on with a prosecution. This is since the prosecutors must believe whether there is any public interest in instituting proceedings against the organisation.