Cognizant-L&T bribery case put on hold after Trump halts FCPA enforcement

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Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Bengaluru: Less than 24 hours after US President Donald Trump signed an executive order halting prosecutions of Americans accused of bribing foreign government officials, a New Jersey court put on hold pretrial proceedings in a six-year-old case involving Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp. The court was to determine whether two former executives of Cognizant routed illicit payments through Larsen & Toubro to Indian government officials.

The US Department of Justice’s case against former Cognizant chief operating officer Gordon Coburn and former chief legal officer Steven Schwartz, which is alleged to involve bribery, is among the first to face uncertainty after the new order signed by Trump on 10 February. "The Court previously scheduled a proceeding for February 18. That will not go forward," Judge Michael E.

Farbiarz ordered on Tuesday. “In light of the Executive Order issued yesterday by the President, the United States shall state its position as to the upcoming trial." According to court documents, the case was to start on 3 March and the pre-trial proceedings were to begin on 18 February. An email to the US Department of Justice seeking comment went unanswered, and an email to lawyers for Coburn and Schwartz on Tuesday did not elicit a response.

Trump halted enforcement of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, which, since coming into effect in 1977, prohibited US nationals and companies from bribing foreign officials overseas. FCPA served as a tool in cracking down on unscrupulous business actors. Halting the enforcement of the act puts international stability at risk, according to at least one anti-corruption watchdog.