In this new era of aggressive sanctions enforcement, companies have to understand the red lines that define where criminal and civil enforcement risk increase. In contrast to the history of FCPA enforcement, DOJ and OFAC...more
With the beginning of the “New FCPA” era coined by DOJ’s Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco, we now need to focus on third-party risk and sanctions enforcement. The law, the practice, and the risks are important and not just...more
On April 24, 2024, President Biden signed into law a sweeping national security legislative package that included the 21st Century Peace Through Strength Act, which includes measures to promote sanctions and export controls...more
5/30/2024
/ Biden Administration ,
China ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Export Controls ,
FinCEN ,
Foreign Policy ,
International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) ,
National Security ,
New Legislation ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Statute of Limitations ,
Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) ,
TWEA
While OFAC’s enforcement actions and guidance points to important steps exporters must take when relying on third-party distributors and other intermediaries, the “reason to know” and affirmative obligations to monitor resale...more
5/23/2024
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Compliance ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Popular ,
Risk Management ,
Sanction Violations ,
Suppliers ,
Supply Chain ,
Third-Party Risk ,
Trade Agreements
Companies rely on robust distribution chains as an efficient mechanism to enter new markets without requiring a significant investment. Additionally, companies may maintain parallel sales activities in markets between their...more
Sorry to start a four-part series with a reference to music from our long-ago past. The Four Tops sang the “Same Old Song, with a Different Meaning” (released in 1965). So, how does that relate to third-party risks? Well,...more
5/21/2024
/ Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Foreign Policy ,
Foreign Relations ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Risk Management ,
Third-Party Risk ,
White Collar Crimes
In this new aggressive era of sanctions and export controls enforcement, companies need to understand the potential risks that DOJ and/or OFAC may identify a company for sanctions investigation....more
5/14/2024
/ Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
Customs ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
FinCEN ,
Foreign Policy ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Popular ,
Sanction Violations ,
Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) ,
Whistleblowers
OFAC is capable of extending a long-arm of enforcement, reaching sometimes non-U.S. companies that may “cause” another company to violate U.S. Sanctions laws. If you need to find an example of this long reach, look no...more
4/22/2024
/ Chemicals ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Energy Sector ,
Financial Transactions ,
Fraudulent Wire Transfers ,
Goods or Services ,
Iran ,
Iran Sanctions ,
Maritime Transport ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Plastics ,
Sanction Violations
As DOJ, OFAC and BIS ramp up sanctions and export controls enforcement, they have continued to provide important compliance guidance. You have to give the enforcement agencies credit — on the one hand, they regularly warn of...more
4/18/2024
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Sanction Violations ,
White Collar Crimes
OFAC is getting ready for a big year. While managing a comprehensive set of sanctions against the Russian Federation in response to its Invasion of Ukraine, OFAC has demonstrated its ability to maintain aggressive...more
If companies operated with perfect governance mechanisms and controls, they would all be ready for the coming sanctions enforcement storm. However, that is not the corporate reality. Even after several companies are the...more
2/16/2024
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Foreign Policy ,
National Security ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Supply Chain ,
White Collar Crimes
There are some things you learn best in calm, and some in storm.
Willa Cather I know I sound like a broken record. The Justice Department’s white collar criminal enforcement has been trending down over the last few...more
2/14/2024
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Liability ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
White Collar Crimes
As always, I tend to repeat myself. However, one important point needs to be repeated — DOJ is in the midst of launching an aggressive sanctions and export control program against corporations and individuals. DOJ has...more
1/23/2024
/ Corruption ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Export Controls ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Foreign Policy ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Popular ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
White Collar Crimes
When it comes to OFAC sanctions violations, honesty is the best policy. Promptly and voluntarily disclosing violations upon their discovery can pay serious dividends.
...more
12/15/2023
/ Economic Sanctions ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Exchanges ,
Iran ,
Iran Sanctions ,
Nasdaq ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Popular ,
Sanction Violations ,
Subsidiaries ,
Voluntary Disclosure
Rewards programs have become ubiquitous in recent years. These so-called loyalty management programs exist to nudge customers or employees in a particular direction; a company’s workers might be inclined to exercise more...more
11/8/2023
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Customer-Loyalty Programs ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Prepaid Payment Products ,
Rewards Programs ,
Sanction Violations
Each quarter, we send many of our clients a quarterly trade compliance update, highlighting important developments over the last few months and summarizing key points for important sanctions programs.
About the document: ...more
11/1/2023
/ Biden Administration ,
Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Embargo ,
Export Controls ,
Foreign Policy ,
Foreign Relations ,
Foreign Trade Regulations ,
General Licenses ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
SDN List
El 18 de octubre de 2023, la Oficina de Control de Activos Extranjeros (“OFAC”) del Departamento del Tesoro de los Estados Unidos tomó varias medidas para proporcionar un alivio (limitado) de sus sanciones económicas en...more
On October 18, 2023, the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) took several steps to provide Venezuela with some limited relief from its sanctions. The relief includes General Licenses...more
10/23/2023
/ Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Foreign Policy ,
Foreign Relations ,
General Licenses ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Oil & Gas ,
Relief Measures ,
Venezuela ,
White Collar Crimes
It looks like the days of Russia’s so-called “shadow fleet” are numbered. The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) announced Thursday that it had imposed sanctions on two entities, and...more
10/13/2023
/ Economic Sanctions ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Export Controls ,
Foreign Policy ,
Foreign Relations ,
Foreign Trade Regulations ,
Infrastructure ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Oil & Gas ,
Oil Prices ,
Popular ,
Russia ,
Vessels
Emigrant Bank (“Emigrant”), a U.S.-based financial institution that bills itself as the oldest bank in New York City, is the latest sanctions violator to be swept up in OFAC’s ongoing enforcement push. On September 21, OFAC...more
On September 22, 2023, the U.S. Department of Treasury Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) issued its “Reminder to file your 2023 annual report of Blocked Property,” noting that entities or persons subject to the...more
The past few weeks have not been kind to 3M. The company recently settled with the SEC for $6.5 million to resolve alleged FCPA violations related to its Chinese subsidiary’s dealings with Chinese state-owned healthcare...more
9/28/2023
/ Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Foreign Policy ,
General Licenses ,
Iran ,
Iran Sanctions ,
Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Popular ,
Sanction Violations ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Settlement ,
White Collar Crimes
The United States is determined to ensure that no one profits off of Russia’s war against Ukraine. To that end, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) has widened the scope of its...more
Construction Specialties, Inc. (“CSI”), a U.S. company specializing in the sale of building materials, agreed to pay $660,594 to settle its liability for three violations of OFAC’s sanctions on Iran. CSI’s illegal conduct...more
8/24/2023
/ Compliance ,
Construction Industry ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Policy ,
Iran ,
Iran Sanctions ,
Multinationals ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Popular ,
Sanction Violations ,
White Collar Crimes
In another significant step notifying global businesses of the new realities – companies are about to face aggressive coordinated criminal and civil prosecutions for sanctions and export control violations. The last piece in...more
8/11/2023
/ Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
Compliance ,
Compliance Management Systems ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
Foreign Policy ,
Foreign Relations ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Sanction Violations ,
Voluntary Disclosure ,
White Collar Crimes