On December 27, 2010, global telecommunications organization Alcatel-Lucent agreed to pay more than $137 million to resolve investigations into its sales practices by the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The DOJ filed charges in the US District Court for the Southern District of Florida consisting of one count of "violating the internal control provisions" of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) [PDF] and one count of "violating the books and records provisions" of the FCPA. According to the DOJ statement, the company and its subsidiaries made improper payments to foreign government officials in order to obtain business contracts in Costa Rica, Honduras, Malaysia and Taiwan. The company also violated FCPA regulations by hiring third-party sales and marketing agents. As part of the settlement, Alcatel-Lucent agreed to enhance their compliance procedures, retain an independent compliance monitor for three years, and submit yearly reports to the DOJ.

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