At a roundtable held on July 12 in São Paulo, Federal Deputy Carlos Zarattini presented and discussed the Anti-Corruption Law. On the same day, regulation of the lobby and protection of intellectual property in the supply chain were also discussed.

A meeting promoted by ETCO and the American NGO Create.org brought together representatives of private Brazilian or multinational companies operating in the country. On the morning of July 12, the participants of the event discussed the Anti-Corruption Law and promoted an exchange of experiences to reinforce the participation of private companies in the fight against corruption and also for the defense of intellectual property.

The roundtable was attended by Federal Deputy Carlos Zarattini, rapporteur of Bill No. 6.826 / 2010, known as the Anti-Corruption Law, which provides for the administrative and civil liability of legal entities for the practice of acts against public administration, national or foreign. The approval of the project by the Federal Senate, according to the deputy, can be seen as a great advance in the face of the fact that there is strong resistance when it comes to changes in corporate legislation.

“The Executive's original project was prepared by the Federal Comptroller General (CGU) and deals with corporate responsibility for corruption irregularities. He arrived at the Chamber in 2010 and it was a long negotiation, involving business entities ”, explained the deputy to representatives of the companies Ambev, Dudalina, Grupo Bimbo, Hypermarcas, Ipsis, Microsoft, Natura, Pepsico, Philip Morris, Raízen, SKY and Vale .

Among the punishments that companies that practice acts of corruption may suffer are fines of 0,1% to 20% of the company's revenue in the year prior to the event, loss of assets, suspension of activities or even the dissolution of the Legal Entity in cases extreme gravity, such as those of orange companies, in addition to the cancellation of financing or incentives from the government.

Zarattini pointed out that the Anti-Corruption Law does not rule out individual liability for acts of corruption, but that companies can have their penalties mitigated if they already have compliance mechanisms or if they collaborate in investigations. "But even so, the company must repair the damage caused", warned the deputy.

The federal deputy also highlighted the bill that regulates the practice of lobbying and that, since 2009, has been in the Constitution and Justice Commission (CCJ). “The project aims to decriminalize activity in the country, which is synonymous with the performance of companies and sectors with the government. The idea is for the Executive to make its information known at all times ”, explained the deputy.

According to Roberto Abdenur, “the regulation of the lobby is something positive to increase the transparency of relations between the private sector and the government, as long as there are parameters that define it well”.

Chain reaction

For Create.Org's CEO, Pamela Passman, combating corruption within companies goes far beyond training among employees or creating compliance departments.

“Corruption and infringement of intellectual property represent financial and reputational risks. Most companies only know if a program works when a problem appears to be solved, ”said Pamela.

For her, a very common problem for companies is the theft of intellectual property. Implementing protection policies not only with your employees, but also with your suppliers, and throughout your supply chain, is fundamental for the security of the information that circulates every day between companies and people.

Create.org - Center for Responsible Business and Trade, is an American non-profit organization based in Washington, DC (USA), dedicated to helping companies, their suppliers and business partners to reduce counterfeiting, piracy, corruption and protecting intellectual property. The organization has spread these themes around the world through round tables such as the one that took place in São Paulo, in partnership with ETCO.

At the end of the event, Roberto Abdenur invited everyone present for a new meeting in the near future, in order to continue the issues discussed and evaluate the progress made in light of the beginning of the implementation of the Anti-Corruption Law.