Odebrecht and Braskem Plead Guilty and Agree to Pay $3.5 billion to 3 Countries to Resolve Corruption Charges

 On December 21, 2016, Odebrecht S.A. (Odebrecht), a global construction conglomerate based in Brazil, and Braskem S.A. (Braskem), a Brazilian petrochemical company, pleaded guilty and agreed to pay a combined total penalty of at least $3.5 billion to resolve charges with the United States, Brazil, and Switzerland arising out of their schemes to pay hundreds of millions of dollars in bribes to government officials around the world.