While the world's attention has turned to the South American nation of Brazil this summer as it hosts the Olympics, those who follow the enforcement of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) have long been watching the region.

Even the Olympics themselves — and related economic activity — are risky for bribes and corruption. Contracts to build infrastructure, potential for price fixing by cartels, media rights, and commercial bribes are just some of the potential areas for possible concern, according to Adam Kaufmann, an attorney with Lewis Baach. There have been news reports, too, that the federal government in Brazil is investigating contracts for services and security that used federal funds.

On the positive side, Brazil and some other Latin American nations are doing more about domestic corruption and cooperating more with U.S. authorities investigating bribery cases, according to attorneys involved in the field.