Human Resource Selection 9th Edition by Marianne Jennings

Exercise 19

The Western oil firms once were the dominant players in Kazakhstan, a Central Asian country that is rich in oil resources. However, the Justice Department indicted U.S. citizen James Giffen for allegedly making $80 million in payments to government officials in Kazakhstan on behalf of Mobil and other companies in order that the companies could obtain drilling rights from the government. Giffen had the touch when it came to getting the oil companies access for drilling. Once Giffen was indicted, the Western oil firms' drilling rights diminished substantially and the presence of Chinese oil firms increased. Many have pointed to this example, with direct causal connection between the elimination of U.S. firms and the increased presence of Chinese firms, as evidence that the FCPA puts U.S. firms and the U.S. economy at a distinct disadvantage to those countries that do no take enforcement action against bribery. How would you respond to this argument? Discuss the reasons behind the bribery statutes. (Nathan Wardi, "The Bribery Law Bracket," Forbes, May 24, 2010, p. 70.)