International corruption and whistleblowing

Leigh Day’s International corruption and whistleblowing team represents individuals working for UK companies, their subsidiaries or UK government entities in an international setting, who have been exposed to unethical or corrupt practices and have suffered harm as a result.

Our team has experience representing professionals across a range of sectors who have suffered serious adverse consequences to their careers because they have been embroiled in unethical or unlawful practices overseas. We fight fearlessly for our clients and recently set a ground-breaking legal precedent, which has afforded much needed protection to overseas workers who fall outside the scope of the existing UK whistleblowing legislation.

Our International corruption and whistleblowing team acts for individuals against some of the world’s largest corporations. We are dedicated to ensuring access to justice for individuals who might otherwise not have the financial means to pursue their cases in the English courts.

What is whistleblowing?

Whistleblowing is the term used when a worker passes on information concerning wrongdoing. The wrongdoing is typically something they have witnessed at work.

Who is affected by international corruption in the workplace?

Anyone working in an international environment could potentially find themselves affected by corruption overseas. Corruption in the workplace can take many different forms, for example it might involve the use of bribery to win contracts; false or fraudulent accounting; or a cover up of criminal or regulatory wrongdoing by a client or colleague.     

Corrupt activity can end up affecting others in the workplace who had nothing to do with the wrongdoing. For example, whistleblowers who raise concerns about wrongdoing in the workplace can end up being side-lined by their employer or losing their job completely. If the identity of the whistleblower is made public, this can have a long-term negative impact on their career. Corruption can also affect workers’ careers and reputations if they are wrongfully associated with the wrongdoing. Financial corruption might end up having a direct impact on a worker’s income if it affects the overall financial position of the company.

How does the law protect the rights of international workers affected by corruption overseas?     

In certain circumstances the law imposes a duty on UK companies not to cause harm to overseas workers by embroiling them in unethical conduct. This means that overseas workers who suffer harm as a result of exposure to corrupt practices at work may be entitled to compensation for their losses.  

Who have we helped?

Our international corruption and whistleblowing team acts for individuals who have suffered harm as a consequence of corruption in the workplace overseas. We recently acted for a whistleblower in a case that set a ground-breaking legal precedent which established, in certain circumstances, a new legal duty on UK companies to protect overseas workers from suffering economic loss as a result of unethical conduct in the workplace.