Election years mean change in Washington. The core responsibilities of a line prosecutor vary little depending on who occupies the White House, but a new Attorney General and leadership can reset priorities for the U.S. Department of Justice. Some priorities will remain unaffected (e.g., national security), but others may change as the new administration decides how to focus limited resources.
The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act has been on the books since 1977, but vigorous enforcement has been a recent phenomenon that really began with the Bush administration. FCPA Professor Mike Koehler noted that candidate Trump has publicly stated that the FCPA is a “horrible law” that puts U.S. businesses at a huge disadvantage.
