Article | June 30, 2026
FCPA Enforcement: Where the Bribery Actually Happened
FCPA enforcement trends analyzed by geography. Discover where bribery risk is concentrated and how it impacts global compliance, investigations and risk management.
Ms. Gao is a chartered accountant and Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) specializing in damages quantification, forensic accounting and business valuation. She has significant experience in post-merger and contractual disputes in international arbitration under the rules of ICC, HKIAC, DIS, SAC and AIAC.
Zhan Gao is a chartered accountant and Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) specializing in damages quantification, forensic accounting and business valuation.
Ms. Gao has advised companies and their legal counsels on damages quantification in complex post M&A disputes under international, German and U.S. accounting standards. Her work experience covers forensic accounting assignments to identify financial misstatements and accounting fraud. Her business valuation experience extends to lost profits calculation arising from breach of contracts, business interruptions and shareholder disputes.
Ms. Gao has significant experience in commercial disputes in international arbitration under the rules of ICC, HKIAC, DIS, SAC and AIAC, and in U.S. and German litigation. She has prepared numerous expert reports, financial analyses and valuation models. She regularly assists expert witnesses in hearings.
Ms. Gao has been engaged by clients in Germany, Switzerland, Austria and beyond. As a native speaker of Mandarin Chinese, she focuses on disputes related to Chinese companies.
She has experience in the following sectors: automotive, financial services, energy, healthcare, consumer goods, professional services, and waste management.
Ms. Gao is fluent in Mandarin Chinese, English, and German.
FCPA Enforcement: Where the Bribery Actually Happened
FCPA enforcement trends analyzed by geography. Discover where bribery risk is concentrated and how it impacts global compliance, investigations and risk management.
Secretariat is pleased to share that 56 of our experts have been recognized in the Lexology Index 2026 Construction report for their outstanding work on complex construction disputes and claims around the world. With 12 experts named as Global Elite Thought Leaders—the report’s most exclusive ranking, achieved by only 5% of listed professionals—Secretariat has earned the No. 1 spot in this category for the second year in a row among more than 750 ranked firms.
Eric Poer, a Managing Director in Secretariat’s Global Investigations & Disputes practice, was retained by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to serve as their forensic accounting expert in a high-profile securities fraud dispute.