LALIVE Newsflash: Commercial Bribery new ex officio crime in Switzerland – Last Grace Period for Health Checks in Risk Prone Organizations?

On 25 September 2015, the Swiss Parliament revised the Criminal Code (Articles 322^octies and 322^novies) and made commercial bribery an ex officio crime:

¹ Any person who offers, promises or gives an employee […..] in the commercial sector an advantage which is not due to him/her, or offers, promises or gives such an advantage to a third party, in order to cause the employee to carry out an act in connection with his/her professional activity which is contrary to his/her duty or dependent on his/her discretion, is liable to custodial sentence up to three years or to a monetary penalty.

² In minor cases, the act is pursued only upon complaint.

Currently, commercial bribery is a crime under the Federal Act on Unfair Competition and prosecuted only upon application by a competitor. The new law is expected to enter info force in 2016.

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