It was the first annual event of Compliance Latam, the most important compliance-oriented community on the continent.
December 2024 – Compliance Latam ( www.compliancelatam.legal ), the first platform dedicated to the regulatory compliance ecosystem in Latin America, held the “Compliance Latam Forum 2024” on December 4 in Montevideo, Uruguay, its first annual event that brought together legal industry leaders, regulatory experts and business ethics professionals.
The event was attended by prominent panelists from companies and law firms from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, the United States, Paraguay and Uruguay.
The Compliance Latam Forum 2024 was developed as a discussion divided into 3 panels:
The first panel, ‘Transforming Compliance: Innovation and Best Practices’, featured experts who shared their vision on how technological innovations and best practices can redefine regulatory compliance. From the use of technology, through the implementation of effective tools to the creation of ethical organizational cultures, success stories and effective strategies.
The second, ‘Internal Investigations: Transforming Challenges into Opportunities’, sought to develop the idea that internal investigations are an opportunity to strengthen the compliance culture. Industry leaders shared innovative approaches and practical experiences from the receipt of a complaint to the final resolution and discussed how to turn challenges into valuable learning and implement best practices.
Lastly, and third, ‘ FCPA and the effects of its application in the countries of the region ‘, a segment that addressed the extraterritorial effect of FCPA (Foreign Corrupt Practices Act) and the scope of its application in companies in the region, which is crucial in order to avoid sanctions from US control bodies. It brought together professionals in the field and industry leaders who offered their knowledge, experiences and best practices.
“Throughout the Forum we explored crucial topics related to best practices in compliance, technological advances in the sector and experiences that are shaping the future of the industry. This event was an invaluable opportunity to share perspectives, learn about the latest innovations and strengthen the collaboration network that is so fundamental to the development of compliance in the region,” said Rodrigo Albagli, partner at az de Chile, one of the law firms that created the platform.
“We wanted this Forum to be not only a space for learning, but also for integration, where all of us who share the commitment to ethics, transparency and regulatory compliance, contribute to building a stronger, more responsible region that is better prepared for the challenges of the future,” said Agustín Mayer, partner at Ferrere de Uruguay, another of the law firms that is a member of Compliance Latam and host of the event.
Jeffrey Lehtman, Partner at the US-based law firm Miller & Chevalier, said that “at Compliance Latam, we remain committed to promoting best practices in compliance and creating a more united community prepared for future challenges. It has been a very valuable event that has allowed us to share experiences that will help us continue to strengthen our practices and stay at the forefront.”
Compliance Latam, which is made up of the firms Albagli-Zaliasnik (Chile), Basham, Ringe y Correa (Mexico), Beccar Varela (Argentina), BLP (Central America), Bustamante Fabara (Ecuador), CPB (Peru), Ferrere (Uruguay, Paraguay and Bolivia), Lefosse (Brazil), Miller & Chevalier (United States) and Posse Herrera Ruiz (Colombia), is presented as a meeting place where different actors in the legal field can find relevant information to face the challenge imposed by current regulatory frameworks, actively promoting best compliance practices in both the private and public world.
The platform features the participation of leading specialists and international experts on topics such as ESG, anti-corruption models, free competition, data protection and privacy, consumer protection, corporate and labor compliance, regulatory compliance, tax compliance, corporate governance, corporate culture, codes of ethics, and human rights.
On November 20, 2024, the deputies of the Congress of Guatemala approved Decree 32-2024, the “Competition Law”, as a matter of National Urgency. This approval marks a significant milestone for the country, seeking to promote a competitive market, attract foreign investment, and promote national economic growth.
This new regulation aims to prevent anti-competitive and monopolistic practices or those that tend to limit market access for small or new Economic Agents (traders, companies and corporations). All of this under the supervision of a new regulatory body, called the Superintendency of Competition, which will be an autonomous and decentralized entity.
This law provides that the Superintendency of Competition may act ex officio or as a result of a complaint from a private individual, in which case the Economic Agent is obliged to provide all possible information to determine whether or not an anti-competitive practice is being implemented, through an administrative process, prioritizing the right to defense and the principle of innocence. In this sense, it establishes infractions, prohibitions and provides coercion to the entity in charge of monitoring compliance with sanctions when anti-competitive practices are determined in the Guatemalan market. They may be sanctioned up to a maximum of two hundred thousand current minimum wages. For this purpose, it is noted that individuals or legal entities, national or foreign, will be subject to this law.
As a consequence of its approval, the Monopoly Crime is repealed, with only economic sanctions, and articles of the Commercial Code, the Consumer and User Protection Law and the State Contracting Law are modified. Likewise, it establishes the supplementary application of the Competition Law with respect to Economic Agents that are governed by their own sectoral laws that contain competition rules and that have regulatory authority, with these prevailing over the Competition Law. Which will surely give room for interpretation in each case.
Finally, the entry into force of this Law has been defined in two stages, the first starting in January 2025 and the next two years after its publication.
It should be mentioned that this still needs to be sanctioned by the President of the Republic of Guatemala and then promulgated and published, in accordance with the legislative process.
The Compliance Forum Latam 2024, which will take place on December 4 in Montevideo, will bring together experts to exchange experiences between Latin America and the United States.
Within the framework of Corruption Prevention Week, and with the aim of promoting the development of regulatory compliance in Latin America, the Compliance Latam * platform will hold its first in-person event on December 4 in Montevideo, Uruguay . This is the Compliance Latam 2024 Forum, an international meeting that will bring together more than 100 leaders from Latin America and the United States to analyze the challenges they faced during 2024 and the foreseeable opportunities that the sector will have in 2025.
Rodrigo Albagli
“It will be a transformative forum, which will allow us to delve deeper into ethical dilemmas and the role of boards of directors from a practical perspective in light of the new regulations that will set the tone for 2025 in the region,” says Rodrigo Albagli , partner at Albagli Zaliasnik(AZ).
Carla Arellano , advisor at Ferrere Abogados, believes that the initiative arises as a consequence of the maturity and growth of Compliance Latam.
“It is a platform dedicated to promoting and disseminating the best corporate practices, organizational culture and regulation around the Compliance ecosystem. It is made up of leading firms from the region and the United States, as well as dozens of collaborators who have joined, recognizing the great potential it has. We have held several virtual events and have disseminated dozens of articles and guides on best practices in regulatory compliance on various topics, such as health, money laundering, personal data protection, corruption, antitrust and Fintech,” says Arellano.
Carla Arellano
This year, the Uruguayan firm proposed moving from virtual to in-person sessions so that different industry leaders and experts in the practice area have a common space to share their experiences and good practices.
“We proposed holding this first international forum in our Montevideo offices and the platform’s firms immediately agreed to this proposal. Regional experts will speak about the latest trends and challenges in Compliance at a regional level; and the meeting will offer an excellent opportunity to establish a wide network of contacts, connecting with professionals from law firms and the public and private sectors from all over the region. Our main objective is to contribute to strengthening a culture of ethical compliance in companies in the region,” says Carla Arellano.
Oscar Tutasaura
Oscar Tutasaura , partner at Posse Herrera Ruiz, highlights that the Compliance Latam Forum 2024 seeks to promote an environment of mutual learning, so that attendees can benefit from the experiences and approaches of their international colleagues.
“The knowledge acquired and the relationships established during the event will contribute to strengthening the culture of ethical compliance in companies in the region. For this reason, the forum will also allow us to generate professional relationships that can be enriching and collaborative for participants in the future,” predicts the Compliance expert.
Challenges for 2024 and opportunities for 2025
For Jeffrey A. Lehtman , partner at Miller & Chevalier, the three most relevant challenges for companies in the region this year have been: the political uncertainty generated by changes in priorities in the governments in power, compliance with laws in a complex regulatory context, and the management of resources destined to strengthen companies’ compliance programs, especially to integrate new technologies into internal control processes.
“In the United States, regulators have focused particularly on the region. In fact, through updates to their enforcement policies, they have pushed companies to strengthen their compliance programs to reduce the risk of non-compliance with the various applicable laws, such as anti-corruption, money laundering and economic sanctions laws. The guidelines of the last two years have focused on strengthening compliance programs through greater control over company data and information, including employee communications through instant messaging platforms; the need for a more robust incentive system, which rewards employees who comply with the laws and punishes those who do not; and the use of technologies and data analysis integrated into the various internal controls, such as the management of third parties and payments,” Lehtman summarizes.
By 2025, one of the central themes will be China’s growing influence in the region and the impact of US President-elect Donald Trump’s decisions.
“With the recent change of government in the United States and in some Latin American countries, it is still early to know what the priorities of these governments will be in terms of the level of attention they will pay to the application of anti-corruption laws and the impact this will have on the region. What could be expected, considering the global context and the position that the Trump government seems to take, is greater attention to the application of economic sanctions and import and export laws, including a special focus on cybersecurity. If this is the case, companies will have to focus on strengthening their compliance programs in terms of the security of their technological structures, data management and third parties,” analyzes the Miller & Chevalier partner.
Second episode of the az t Podcast of “ Rule The Rules ”, a space where the Director of the Compliance Group of az, Yoab Bitran , spoke with Ainhoa Pozzi , Legal Vice President at Aramark .
Ainhoa shared her vision of compliance and her practical experience in the field, offered practical examples and gave us a detailed account of her professional career.
In the first episode of the az t Podcast of “ Rule The Rules ”, a space where the Director of the az Compliance Group, Yoab Bitran , spoke with Mariano Gojman , Compliance Officer of Siemens.
From his regional role, which includes all Spanish-speaking countries in South America, Marinao shared his experiences and provided practical recommendations for companies, ideas on how to generate commitment with an organization’s employees and how to face a crisis.
