Dear Friend of TI Canada:
This is a reminder and update notice regarding our upcoming Vancouver Discussion Group event, which will be held on Sept 22, 2016 at the offices of BC Hydro, 333 Dunsmuir, Vancouver.
This will be the first event of our innovative new Anti-Corruption Law Program – a partnership involving TI Canada, the Peter A. Allard School of Law at UBC and the International Centre for Criminal Law Reform (ICCLR), also based at UBC. The September 22 event will in a second floor meeting room at the BC Hydro building at 333 Dunsmuir Street, Vancouver. The building is located at the corner of Dunsmuir and Homer Streets – a short walk from our usual meeting location at Burrard and Dunsmuir. Parking may be available in the building, but this is unfortunately not guaranteed. There are numerous alternative parking garages within a 2-3 block radius.
The theme of the September 22 meeting will be the role of debarment programs in general as an anti-corruption tool, with specific reference to “The Government of Canada’s New ‘Integrity Regime’. Under this regime, which has been developed by Public Works and Government Services Canada (PWGSC), a company can be debarred from doing business with PWGSC for up to 10 years if it or an affiliate are convicted (or possibly even charged) with a listed offence in Canada or some jurisdictions outside Canada.
Our keynote speaker will be Milos Barutciski, Partner, Bennett Jones and until recently a Board member of TI Canada. Milos co-chairs Bennett Jones’s International Trade and Investment Group. He has represented Canadian and international companies, including Fortune 500 companies and corporations listed on the TSX, NYSE, NASDAQ, European and Asian exchanges, in anti-corruption matters on five continents, including investigations by the RCMP, the U.S. DOJ and SEC, and the World Bank, and has appeared as counsel before the World Bank’s Sanctions Committee. He is a founding member of the Business and Industry Advisory Committee to the OECD Task Force on Bribery and was intimately involved in the OECD’s consultations and negotiations leading to the 1997 OECD Anti-Bribery Convention. Mr. Barutciski was consulted by the Government of Canada regarding the drafting of the Corruption of Foreign Public Officials Act and was retained by the World Bank on regulatory reform mandates in Africa and the Middle East. He is a member of the Bars of Ontario and Quebec. Milos’ resume is attached to this email.
Milos will discuss the anti-corruption role of debarment programs in other jurisdictions, and will then trace the origins of the Integrity Regime and efforts made by TI Canada and others to encourage the Government of Canada to modify the Regime to make it more effective as a means of encouraging good corporate behaviour. In its initial form, the regime was viewed by many as a draconian and unproductive form of punishment. The Regime has been modified somewhat, but many believe that further changes are required.
Milos will be joined on a panel following his presentation by two very experienced professionals – Mike Savage, Partner, Ernst & Young Toronto, and Sean Hecker, Partner, Debevoise & Plimpton, New York.
Mike is the practice leader for fraud investigation and dispute services for Ernst & Young in Canada. He is a Chartered Professional Accountant, a Certified Fraud Examiner, and is Certified in Financial Forensics. Mike has experience in dealing with whistleblowers, fraud detection, fraud prevention programs, forensic accounting investigation, litigation support and dispute resolution. He has investigated allegations of asset misappropriation, corrupt practices and financial statement fraud in Canada, the US, and many locations in Europe, Africa and Asia. Mike’s resume is attached to this email.
Sean is an experienced trial lawyer whose practice focuses on white collar criminal defense, internal investigations and complex civil litigation. He has tried numerous cases to juries in federal and state court and regularly defends individuals and companies in grand jury and regulatory investigations and criminal proceedings involving allegations of securities and commodities fraud, money laundering, tax fraud and criminal antitrust violations. Mr. Hecker has conducted many internal investigations of alleged FCPA violations and regularly advises companies on anti-corruption compliance. Sean’s resume can be found at http://www.debevoise.com/seanhecker
Details of the event are as follows:
Date and Time: September 22, 2016; 4 pm to 7 pm
Location: Offices of BC Hydro at 333 Dunsmuir St., Vancouver. The meeting room is located on the second floor. Please report to Security in the building lobby at least 15 minutes before the scheduled start of the meeting. If you have a problem with access, please call me on my mobile at 778-320-4696.
Cost: There will be no charge for this event. BC Hydro has kindly agreed to provide meeting space and coffee free of charge, and our speaker and panelists will attend at their own expense.
As with other events to be held under the Anti-Corruption Law Program, relevant pre-reading materials will be emailed to registered participants one week in advance of the meeting. This should contribute to improved understanding of the topic of discussion, and encourage informed dialogue among participants.
It will be important to know the names of participants well in advance of the meeting, to allow us to email reading materials to registered participants, to plan for meeting space and coffee, and to inform BC Hydro Security of the names of participants, thereby facilitating the process of clearing Security.
Please indicate by email to John Ritchie as soon as possible if you will attend. For those of you who have already registered – thanks – we look forward to your participation in this event.
We look forward to welcoming you all to the meeting.
Regards
Joe Ringwald (former TI Canada Board Member)
John Ritchie (current TI Canada Board Member)
Diego Venegas (current TI Canada Board Member)
Joseph Weiler (Professor, Peter A. Allard School of Law, UBC)