U.S. extends leniency program for companies that disclose bribery

The U.S. Justice Department will extend a program that offers companies leniency if they voluntarily tell authorities when employees may have paid bribes, a senior official said on Friday. The program was set to expire on April 5, after a one-year pilot period but will now be continued indefinitely while officials evaluate its effectiveness, Acting Assistant Attorney General Kenneth Blanco said at the American Bar Association’s conference on white collar crime in Miami.