FRANCE / PORTUGAL – The OECD Working Group on Bribery, representing 46 countries, has expressed serious concerns over Portugal’s failure to address urgent recommendations regarding its legal framework on foreign bribery. This particularly relates to the liability of legal entities and sanctions under the Convention on Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International Business Transactions (Anti-Bribery Convention).
One major issue highlighted is Portugal’s lack of amendments to Article 7 of Law 20/2008, which currently does not impose fines alongside imprisonment for individuals guilty of foreign bribery. This concern has been raised by the Working Group multiple times, starting over a decade ago during the Phase 3 evaluation in 2013 and reiterated in the Phase 4 evaluation in 2022.
Additionally, the persistence of the defense of acting against express orders for legal entities poses another challenge. The Working Group warned as early as 2007 during the Phase 2 evaluation that this defense could enable companies to evade liability for foreign bribery under Portuguese law, a concern reiterated in subsequent evaluations.
The situation is exacerbated by inadequate enforcement against legal entities involved in foreign bribery, raising significant questions about Portugal’s capacity to hold both natural and legal persons accountable.
The OECD Working Group urges Portugal to swiftly rectify these enduring legal issues and enhance enforcement measures against legal entities involved in foreign bribery. Portugal is expected to provide an update to the Working Group regarding these matters in December 2024.
– Download the report here.
