Bribery Laws in the UK and US

This assignment analyzes bribery laws in the UK and the United States. It examines the Bribery Act 2010 of the UK and the General Federal Bribery Statute of the US, comparing their definitions of bribery, penalties (including imprisonment and fines), and consequences such as disqualification from directorships. The document also delves into guidelines for receiving and giving gifts and hospitality, emphasizing the importance of transparency and adhering to specific value limits. Finally, it highlights the distinction between bribery and permissible gift-giving within legal frameworks.

Bribery Law in UK

Bribery Law
Bribery is considered to be an act to give or receive money or goods with the aim to alter the
behaviour, normally benefitting to the giver, which would not have been altered otherwise. It
basically influences the actions of a person in charge of public or legal duty. Hence, it is directly
related to taking illicit advantage.
There are set rules and regulations with respect to bribery that has been mentioned under
bribery act 2010 of United Kingdom. It covers the criminal law which has direct relation to
bribery. The penalty being mentioned in the act is of maximum 10 years of imprisonment and is
also liable for confiscation under Proceeds of Crime Act 2002. The person can also be
disqualified from the position of director under Company Directors Disqualification Act 1986.
The law being mentioned is considered to be the toughest law for anti-corruption in the world
(Belch, 2014).
United States is also considered to be an active state for forming laws against bribery.
The punishment against bribery is given by General Federal Bribery Statute. As per 18 USCS
prec § 201(b), the person who is directly or indirectly indulged in corruptly giving offering or
promising anything of some value is liable to pay fine for the offence of bribery. The value of
fine will not be more than three times of the value of thing and imprisonment not extending for
more than fifteen years. In case of higher intensity of crime, the person can be liable for both as
well (Rose-Ackerman and Hunt, 2015).
A certain set of policies and procedures is required to be followed while receiving and
giving hospitality and gifts. The person is entitled to retain the gifts which are of or below the
value of £40.00. if the value of gift is exceeding £40.00, in that case, it is mandatory to opt for
one of the suggested options:
 Sharing gift with all the staff members
 Raising the gift for charity
 Donating the gift to charity
 Making donation of extended amount to the charity and keeping the gift of that value.
Further, hospitality in lieu of gift can only be accepted when a direct link is present with the
working arrangements. Some of the suggested cases are as follows:
 Attending or speaking at a conference which provides complementary travelling and
stay.
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 Attending any free training course
 Involving in lunches or dinners for good future business relationships.
The hospitality must be purely related to social events and should consist of genuine reason
of business only (Wells, 2015).
As per the regulations in UK, it is important to declare adequate amount of information
regarding the gift or hospitality services. It is important to declare the purpose of gift or
hospitality (Stewart and et.al., 2014). Moreover, the estimated value of the gift must also be
declared so that it does not come under the periphery of bribe.
Hence, in this case, bribery is quite different from that of extending gifts and hospitality.
The difference is required to be assessed diligently and follow the rules and regulation that has
been mentioned under the three aspects, i.e., bribery, gifts and hospitality.
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REFERENCES
Books and journals
Belch, G., 2014. An Analysis of the Efficacy of the Bribery Act 2010. Aberdeen Student L.
Rev.. 5. p.134.
Rose-Ackerman, S. and Hunt, S., 2015. International Anti-Corruption Policies and the United
States National Interest. In Debates of Corruption and Integrity (pp. 38-58). Palgrave
Macmillan UK.
Stewart, C. and et.al., 2014. The problems of biobanking and the Law of Gifts. Bloomsbury
Publishing.
Wells, C., 2015. Enforcing Anti-Bribery Laws against Transnational Corporations—A UK
Perspective. In Debates of Corruption and Integrity (pp. 59-80). Palgrave Macmillan UK.
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