United States v. Kay
United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
359 F.3d 738 (2004)
- Written by Ryan McCarthy, JD
Facts
American Rice Inc. (ARI) was a United States based company that exported rice to Haiti. Kay (defendant), an ARI officer, was indicted for violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA). Kay was charged with making payments to customs officials in Haiti to bribe them into accepting documents listing less rice than was, in fact, being imported, so that less taxes would be due. Kay filed a motion to dismiss the indictment for failure to state an offense, contending that payments made to officials with the intent of reducing taxes are not payments to “obtain or retain business,” as required for a conviction under the FCPA. The district court granted Kay’s motion. The United States appealed, arguing that the FCPA applies to payments that indirectly assist in obtaining or retaining business.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Wiener, J.)
What to do next…
Here's why 834,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
- Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 46,500 briefs, keyed to 994 casebooks. Top-notch customer support.
- The right amount of information, includes the facts, issues, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents.
- Access in your classes, works on your mobile and tablet. Massive library of related video lessons and high quality multiple-choice questions.
- Easy to use, uniform format for every case brief. Written in plain English, not in legalese. Our briefs summarize and simplify; they don’t just repeat the court’s language.
