Anti - Corruption

The ICC Commission on Anti-Corruption encourages self-regulation by business in confronting
issues of extortion and bribery and provides business input into international initiatives to fight
corruption.

ICC has been a pioneer in the fight against extortion and bribery in international business
transactions. The effort began in 1975 under a committee chaired by Lord Shawcross, a former
British Attorney General and Nuremburg prosecutor. The first ICC Rules of Conduct to Combat
Extortion and Bribery were produced in 1977 and were most recently updated in 2005. The
Rules constitute the cornerstone of ICC’s anti-corruption work, serving both as a tool for selfregulations
by business and as a roadmap for governments in their efforts to fight extortion and
bribery. Some of the key rules include:

• Prohibition of extortion and bribery for any purpose
• Place a bar on kickbacks and techniques which channel payments to government officials,
  relatives or associates
• Limit payments to agents to levels appropriate for their services
• Require measures to prevent agents paying bribes
• Make the recommendation for independent auditing systems
• Call for directors to use proper control systems
• Political contributions to be made only in accordance to applicable law
• Call on companies to draw up their own codes which must be in line with ICC rules but
  tailored to the needs of their business.

Projects for 2006

• Promote the newly revised ICC rules of conduct and recommendations to combat extortion
  and bribery.
• Develop a practical ICC tool to guide companies in addressing anti-corruption issues and
  compliance procedures.
• Raise awareness of the problem of the solicitation of bribes as a key element in fighting
  corruption.
• Monitor latest developments relating to the implementation of the UN and OECD conventions
  against corruption.

Commission Officers

• Chair: François Vincke, Avocat au Barreau, Willke Farr & Gallagher (Belgium)
• Vice-Chairs: Fritz Heimann, Counsellor to General Counsel, General Electric (US); Thomas
  Pletscher, Member of the Executive Board, Economiesuisse – Swiss Business Federation
  (Switzerland)
• Secretary: Julian Kassum, ICC

For more information, please contact:

ICC United Kingdom
Tel: 020 7838 9363 Fax: 020 7235 5447 E-mail: membership@iccorg.co.uk