White collar crime: La Poste held liable for its due diligence obligations: “the beginning of a new era”
On 5 December, the Paris judicial court has rendered the first decision on the merits on the basis of the law on the duty of vigilance since it came into force in 2017. This decision orders La Poste to complete its vigilance plan and reinforce its obligations in that regard. The Sud PTT workers union alleged that the French subsidiaries of La Poste, Chronopost and DPD, had employed undocumented workers and had reserved difficult tasks for them, particularly at night. Following the ruling, which is not subject to penalty payments, La Poste must “establish procedures for evaluating subcontractors according to the precise risks identified by risk mapping”. > Read article
ADP settles an old corruption case linked to Gaddafi’s Libya
The ADP Group (Aéroport de Paris) has entered into a convention judiciaire d’intérêt public (deferred prosecution agreement), approved by the Paris judicial court on 4 December, with the parquet national financier in relation to alleged corruption between 2007 and 2011 in connection with the award of airport design contracts in Libya. ADP Ingénierie (ADPI), subsidiary of the group, has agreed to pay a fine of 14.6 million euros to the French Treasury and avoids prosecution for these acts. > Read article
Israel-Hamas war: on trial for corruption, Netanyahu clings to power
The trial of current Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu for bribery, breach of trust and fraud resumed earlier this week, after having been suspended due to the war against Israël and Hamas. Indicted in 2019, he is accused of having granted favors to the head of a telecommunications company in exchange for “favorable media coverage”, and of offering gifts worth $300,000 to businessmen. Benyamin Netanyahu firmly denies the allegations and invokes a media-political plot. > Read the article
#Ethics and Compliance: The European Union recognizes the crime of ecocide in its criminal law, an historic decision
The European Commission, the Council of the European Union and the European Parliament reached a provisional agreement on 16 November to enshrine ecocide in European criminal law. After a proposal from the Council’s presidency, the directive will introduce a qualified offence of ecocide, extend its material scope (initially limited to dangerous waste, radioactive materials, and the illegal trade in wildlife) to include notably the trade of imported deforestation products, and cover more broadly any behavior that harms the environment. Authors of such offences could face up to 8-year imprisonment and fines of up to 5% of turnover or 40 million euros for companies.> Read article
The discreet ramping up of environmental criminal law
Navacelle contributed to The Legal Industry Reviews’ fourth edition about recent gradual application of environmental criminal law in France, with the introduction of a specific criminal policy and an increasing number of sanctions.> Read article
