The United States took two significant actions last week to cement its stance that protecting human rights around the globe is a central U.S. national security and foreign policy interest in export control policy and...more
Today’s alert—the third and final installment in our Sanctions 2022 Year in Review series—provides an overview of U.S. sanctions enforcement in 2022, including the key lessons learned from the enforcement actions issued by...more
As Russia’s war in Ukraine passes the one-year mark, and the battles on the ground move forward with escalating levels of ferocity, governments around the world continue to coordinate and respond with increasingly severe...more
3/3/2023
/ Asset Freeze ,
Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
Central Bank of Russia ,
Economic Sanctions ,
EU ,
Export Controls ,
Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Popular ,
Russia ,
UK ,
Ukraine
2022 was an unprecedented year for U.S. sanctions and the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). While the sweeping new U.S. sanctions imposed against Russia and Belarus in unparalleled...more
3/2/2023
/ Burma ,
China ,
Drug Trafficking ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Human Rights ,
Iran ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Russia ,
UN Security Council ,
United Nations ,
Venezuela ,
Virtual Currency
At the beginning of the year, we predicted that 2022 would be the next big year for the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) enforcement of the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA). And 2022 delivered, though not always in ways...more
When Russia invaded Ukraine earlier this year, the international outcry was immediate. Governments around the world took steps to isolate Russia economically and diplomatically. In the United States, most of the attention has...more
After months of negotiations, Congress revealed the compromise version of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023 (NDAA) on December 6, 2022. The bill, viewed as a “must-pass” piece of legislation because...more
12/15/2022
/ Burma ,
China ,
Department of Defense (DOD) ,
Drug Trafficking ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Export Controls ,
Financial Institutions ,
Foreign Investment ,
Human Rights ,
Iran ,
NDAA ,
Popular ,
Russia ,
Semiconductors ,
Supply Chain
As Russia’s war in Ukraine stretches into its tenth month, governments around the world continue to coordinate and respond with increasingly severe sanctions and export controls....more
12/7/2022
/ Crude Oil ,
Economic Sanctions ,
EU ,
Export Controls ,
Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Oil & Gas ,
Oil Prices ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Russia ,
UK ,
Ukraine
In what likely portends enforcement actions in the near future, the U.S. Department of the Treasury published its first ever CFIUS Enforcement and Penalty Guidelines (the “Guidelines”)....more
The UK government has proposed new registration requirements for foreign influence activities in the UK as part of its attempts to strengthen the resilience of the UK’s political system and democratic institutions against...more
On October 12, 2022, a federal district judge in the District of Columbia, Judge James E. Boasberg, dismissed a U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) civil complaint against businessman Steve Wynn, which sought to compel Wynn to...more
Last month, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) released its Annual Report to Congress covering 2021. The key takeaway is that CFIUS is more active than ever, subjecting a record number of...more
9/15/2022
/ CFIUS ,
China ,
Corporate Counsel ,
FIRRMA ,
Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) ,
Foreign Direct Investment ,
Foreign Investment ,
Jurisdiction ,
Mitigation ,
National Security ,
Written Notice
Revised draft legislation circulated June 13th is the most recent salvo in a long-running effort that is increasingly likely to create an unprecedented outbound investment review mechanism in the United States. ...more
6/17/2022
/ CFIUS ,
China ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Department of Agriculture ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
Foreign Entities ,
Foreign Investment ,
National Security ,
Russia ,
Trade Representatives ,
Written Notice
As Russia’s bloody invasion of Ukraine nears the end of its second month, with regular reports of human rights violations, possible chemical weapons attacks, and head of state musings regarding whether this campaign amounts...more
4/18/2022
/ Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
EU ,
Export Controls ,
Financial Markets ,
Foreign Relations ,
Japan ,
Most-Favored Nations ,
Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Popular ,
Russia ,
Trade Relations ,
UK ,
Ukraine
As Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine stretches on into its second month, the United States, European Union, United Kingdom, and other global allies have continued to pour additional funding and arms into Ukraine while...more
3/23/2022
/ Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
EU ,
Export Controls ,
Funding ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Russia ,
SWIFT ,
UK ,
Ukraine ,
US Department of State
On March 2, 2022, the U.S. Department of Justice announced the launch of Task Force KleptoCapture, an interagency law enforcement task force dedicated to enforcing the unprecedented sanctions, export, and other measures taken...more
After less than a week of a full-scale war between Russia and Ukraine, the post-Cold War global architecture appears irrevocably shattered, as Western nations line up to offer support and military and economic aid to Ukraine...more
3/1/2022
/ Airspace ,
Asset Freeze ,
Economic Sanctions ,
EU ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
Export Controls ,
G7 ,
Popular ,
Russia ,
SWIFT ,
UK ,
Ukraine ,
United States
Morrison & Foerster’s Automotive Task Force represents automotive industry clients in their most significant legal matters.
We have tapped our multidisciplinary Automotive Task Force to get their opinions on what is likely...more
2/23/2022
/ Anti-Bribery ,
Antitrust Division ,
Automotive Industry ,
Corruption ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Export Controls ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Initial Public Offering (IPO) ,
International Trade Commission (ITC) ,
Popular ,
Sanctions ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Special Purpose Acquisition Companies (SPACs)
Back in July, we took a look at the enforcement actions for the first half of 2021 issued by the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). Today’s post – the second half of our OFAC 2021 Year...more
2/9/2022
/ Cloud Storage ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Digital Currency ,
Foreign Exchanges ,
Foreign Subsidiaries ,
Geolocation ,
Know Your Customers ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Popular ,
Sanctions ,
SDN List ,
U.S. Treasury ,
UK ,
Virtual Currency
2021 was a year of transition in the United States and for the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). OFAC’s year, while busy, was far different from 2020, as the Biden Administration’s...more
2/8/2022
/ Biden Administration ,
Burma ,
China ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Forced Labor ,
Hong Kong ,
Hong Kong Autonomy Act (HKAA) ,
Iran ,
NDAA ,
NGOs ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Popular ,
Russia ,
SDN List ,
U.S. Treasury
In response to Russia’s increasingly aggressive troop build-up on the Ukrainian border and the lack of progress of negotiations between Russia and the United States, Democrats and Republicans in Congress appear united in...more
In this episode of MoForecast, James Koukios, co-chair of the Securities Litigation, Enforcement, and White Collar Defense and the FCPA + Global Anti-Corruption Practice Groups, speaks with fellow MoFo partners Brandon L. Van...more
In a closely followed and much anticipated action, President Biden signed the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2022 (NDAA) on December 27, 2021 – following its approval by the U.S. Senate and House of...more
Last week the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that it is seeking public comment as it considers substantive updates to the implementing regulations of the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) for the first time...more
On November 8, 2021, the U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”), U.S. Department of the Treasury (“Treasury”), and the U.S. Department of State (“State”) made several significant announcements regarding recent U.S. government...more