Latest news with #GordonCoburn
Bloomberg
15-07-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
SEC Dropping Bribery Case Against Former Cognizant Executives
The US Securities and Exchange Commission moved to dismiss a long-running bribery case against two former executives of Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp., the latest sign of the Trump administration's shift away from enforcing the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. The regulator and the two former executives — Gordon Coburn and Steven Schwartz — filed a joint motion Tuesday in New Jersey federal court to drop the case. The filing calls for dismissing the case with prejudice, meaning it can't be refiled.
Yahoo
15-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
US SEC ends Cognizant bribery case that the Justice Department also abandoned
By Jonathan Stempel (Reuters) -The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ended a civil bribery case against two former Cognizant Technology Solutions executives, after President Donald Trump decided to stop enforcing a key anti-corruption law. In a filing in the Newark, New Jersey federal court, the SEC said it dismissed claims against Gordon Coburn and Steven Schwartz "in the exercise of its discretion and as a policy matter," and not on the merits. The dismissal followed the Department of Justice's April 3 decision to abandon a related criminal case against Coburn and Schwartz. James Loonam, a lawyer for Coburn, said he was very happy with the dismissal. A lawyer for Schwartz did not immediately respond to requests for comment. U.S. authorities charged Coburn and Schwartz in February 2019 with authorizing a $2 million bribe to an Indian official for helping to obtain a construction permit for a new Cognizant office in Chennai. The SEC accused Coburn and Schwartz of violating anti-bribery, books and records, and internal accounting controls provisions of federal securities laws. Alina Habba, the acting U.S. attorney in New Jersey, said in April the criminal case should end in light of Trump's executive order pausing enforcement of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. The FCPA prohibits companies that operate in the United States from bribing foreign officials. Trump has called it a "horrible law," and when signing his executive order said ending enforcement would "mean a lot more business for America." Cognizant agreed in February 2019 to pay $25.2 million to settle with the SEC. The regulator also accused the Teaneck, New Jersey-based information technology and outsourcing company of authorizing two additional bribes. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Wall Street Journal
14-04-2025
- Business
- Wall Street Journal
Trump Administration Retreats From White-Collar Criminal Enforcement
Gordon Coburn and Steven Schwartz were on the verge of going to trial on charges of scheming to pay bribes in India when President Trump issued an executive order that put enforcement of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act on hold. It was a bolt of good luck for the former executives for Cognizant Technology Solutions, who had denied wrongdoing. The case had been dragging on for six years. Within two months, a new top prosecutor appointed by Trump dropped it.
