LEGAL ENVIRONMENT 4 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

LEGAL ENVIRONMENT 4 - Essay Example to get the contract approved by the Niger president. The bribes were accepted by the Niger officials and the contract to supply arms went through. Analysis : According to the provisions of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act it is unlawful for any U.S. citizen / company, to bribe or to make a corrupt payment to a foreign official of any govt. or company for the sole purpose of obtaining or retaining business in order to beat the competition. According to the Anti- Bribery provisions of the FCPA it applies to any individual, firm, officer, director, employee, or agent of a firm and any stockholder acting on behalf of a firm. Also the person who makes or authorizes of making the payment should have a corrupt intention, and the payment must be directed to induce the recipient to misuse his official position to direct business wrongfully to the payer or to any other person. -- The FCPA completely prohibits payments, making a offer of bribe, or making a promise to pay (or authorizing a third party or intermediary to pay or offer) money or anything of value. The prohibition applies to any foreign public official irrespective of his ra nk or position, it also extends of making corrupt payments to a foreign political party or party official, or any candidate for foreign political office. According to FCPA the prohibition applies to payments made in order to assist the firm / company in obtaining or retaining business for or with, or directing business to, any person. ( S 78dd-2. Prohibited foreign trade practices by domestic concerns).Now if we analyze the facts of the Niger case in light of the provisions of the FCPA the case is crystal clear. In the Niger case the Vice President of NAPCO Richard H. Liebo was directly involved in first promising to pay one Captain Ali Tiemogo, chief of maintenance for the Niger Air Force in return for getting the contract of supply of arms by NAPCO to be approved by the president. Even later, Liebo was directly involved as a representative of NAPCO in paying bribes to Captain Ali Tiemogo and his cousin Tahirou Barke who incidentally was also the first consular for the Niger Embass y in Washington,DC. NAPCO issued commission checks to three "agents" identified as Amadou Mailele, Captain Tiemogo's brother-in-law; Fatouma Boube, Captain Tiemogo's sister-in-law; and Miss E. Dave, Mr. Barke's girlfriend. It is immaterial that Neither Mr. Mailele, Ms. Boube, nor Ms Dave, however, received the commission checks or acted as NAPCO's agent and these individuals were merely intermediaries through whom NAPCO made payments to Captain Tiemogo and Mr. Barke as according to FCPA even payments made to or through intermediaries is liable to prosecution. Even the fact that neither NAPCO's corporate president, Henri Jacob, nor another superior of Mr. Liebo's approved the payment of these "commission payments." is immaterial and NAPCO is liable for prosecution as per the penal provisions of FCPA. This position is also supported by the judicial decisions in United States of America, Appellee, vs. Robert Richard KING, Appellant.( 2003 WL 22938694 (8th Cir.(Mo) and USA versus David Kay(Appeal from the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas(No. Crim.A.H-01-914)

EXtensible Business Reporting Language Research Paper

EXtensible Business Reporting Language - Research Paper Example Currently, the SEC requires that all companies should utilize the XBRL format in presenting their financial statements and reports. Owing to the constant push for the use of the new business and finance communication mode, this paper explores potential advantages and disadvantages of XBRL implementation for business entities. Advantages of XBRL The proponents of XBRL have hinted that entrepreneurs and business entities stand to benefit greatly from XBRL implementation. Some of these befits include: i. It Is Accepted Globally As a Business Information Sharing Tool XBRL is readily accessible in many parts of the world and enhances information dissemination and sharing in various languages through electronic means. XBRL makes it possible for investors to conduct nearly real-time assessments because increases information accessibility. Data tagged in XBRL can be transformed into various formats such as HTML or spreadsheets, depending on the needs of the users. Owing to its global presenc e and high level of accessibility and acceptability, it reduces the cost of mechanizing business information (Gelinas, Dull & Wheeler, 2012). ii. XBRL Benefits Many Stakeholders XBRL can be utilized by investors to perform analysis of financial reports by corporation, thus making it a desirable tool. It allows corporations to automate their information and reduce manual processes of financial reporting. For the government, XBRL facilitate the collection of information about various businesses in the country. XBRL also ensures high level of information sharing efficiency (Stabryla, 2012). iii. XBRL Can Be Multi-Purpose XBRL functions beyond financial reporting role. It is applicable in many business information sharing scenarios. It is capable of streamlining the process of preparing and reporting tax returns. It also facilitates distribution of non-financial information such as production quantities as well as stock reserves among others. XBRL can also be fundamental for ensuring in ternal organizational efficiencies by facilitating smooth flow of information electronically from source to where they are needed most. It also facilitates data sharing between organizations and their customers, suppliers and strategic partners among others (Garner, McKee & McKee, 2008). XBRL can facilitate mechanization of purchase process and invoice reception and many other processes. iv. It Facilitates Substantiation and Reusability XBRL can speed up the process of financial reporting and information sharing process of an organization. It can greatly enhance spreadsheet functionalities through facilitation of electronic information access, which helps to alleviate human input inaccuracy during entry. Information conveyed through XBRL remains for a long period of time and can be re-used over and over again if needed (Bergeron, 2004). v. It Is an Open Source The last benefit of XBRL is that it is an open source. Corporations can create taxonomies that can be used at no cost for th eir users. Because it is freely accessible, corporations can maximize from it while at the same time ensuring low cost of its implementation (Bergeron, 2004). Disadvantages of XBRL In spite of all the benefits that come with XBRL, there are some disadvantages that are associated with the tool. Some of these disadvantages include: i. XBRL Amplifies the Likelihood of Error One of the most pointed out shortcomings of XBRL is its