companies should be aware of the risks involved in engag- ing third-party agents or intermediaries. The fact that a hapter 2 bribe is paid by a third party does not eliminate the poten- The FCPA: tial for criminal or civil FCPA liability.?! Anti-Bribery Provisions For instance, a four-company joint venture used two agents—a British lawyer and a Japanese trading company—to bribe Nigerian government officials in the foreign officials.'®” Under the FCPA, a person’s state of order to win a series of liquefied natural gas construc- mind is “knowing” with respect to conduct, a circumstance, tion projects.” Together, the four multi-national cor- ora result if the person: porations and the Japanese trading company paid a e is aware that [he] is engaging in such conduct, combined $1.7 billion in civil and criminal sanctions that such circumstance exists, or that such result is for their decade-long bribery scheme. In addition, the substantially certain to occur; or subsidiary of one of the companies pleaded guilty and a e hasa firm belief that such circumstance exists or number of individuals, including the British lawyer and that such result is substantially certain to occur. the former CEO of one of the companies’ subsidiaries, Thus, a person has the requisite knowledge when he is received significant prison terms. aware of a high probability of the existence of such circum- Similarly, a medical device manufacturer entered into stance, unless the person actually believes that such circum- a deferred prosecution agreement as the result of corrupt stance does not exist.” As Congress made clear, it meant to payments it authorized its local Chinese distributor to pay impose liability not only on those with actual knowledge to Chinese officials.’ Another company, a manufacturer of wrongdoing, but also on those who purposefully avoid of specialty chemicals, committed multiple FCPA viola- actual knowledge: tions through its agents in Iraq: a Canadian national and the Canadian’s c