Legal Competitiveness

The current state of the world is that of a competitive and performance driven market. Every competitor wants to make a profit. They want their product to be on top and be the number one company to work for. The leaders are having to make decisions that challenge their moral values and corporate guidelines. This challenge has caused some leaders to commit bribery to gain profit and position in the market. So what was so different from today’s competitive world to ten decades ago, well there is no difference. Bribery was being committed back then as well, although it is more visible today. With the internet, television on your phone, email, and streaming video, people have access to this information right away. Bribery is a white-collar crime that includes monetary, property, position, or something in return that has value. These bribes are often called kickbacks or payoffs in the commercial world. They are usually directed to a person or a business for value.

If we take the case of Major John L. Cockerham, a military contractor that accepted bribes from a military contractor for amounts that added up well over ten million dollars (Washington Post, 2007). The even more astounding about this case was that this major was having his wife and sister collecting the money on his behalf (Washington Post, 2007). Here is any individual that is supposed to be fighting for our country but keeping an interest for his family and trying to take advantage of a underdeveloped country. Cockerham was charged with conspiracy and money laundering which is a form of bribery. This criminal charge is a form of bribery but is not commercial. This family had a motive for creating this crime and still committed it even though they knew it was wrong.

The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act was passed in 1977. This Act defined the way a company would handle ethical and legal behavior (Reference for Business, 2008). FCPA enforces that bribery is illegal when it is in conjunction with awarding a contract or a retention of a continuing business activity (Cheeseman, 2008) There fines for violation of this law can be any from one hundred thousand dollars and imprisonment to two million dollars and imprisonment. In 1988 there was an amendment change that excused firms from violation if they could prove that the payments were lawful (Cheeseman, 2008). Let’s take a look at GreatestColas organization and how these cases and laws affect the company.

Another law that Cockerham violated is Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Act or RICO (Cheeseman, 2008). This law was made to deter companies from committing crimes that involves gambling, arson, wire fraud, embezzlement, and bribery (Cheeseman, 2008). The major made some unethical decisions that contributed to his charges. The same unethical decisions that Cockerham was making, the leaders of today need to be aware of not making the same decisions. Some examples of some of the business activities that could occur in our organization are falsified numbers, misuse of company property, or lied to leaders about business matters. (Robbins,