The Council of the European Union (Council) has updated its EU Best Practices for the Effective Implementation of Restrictive Measures. Published on 3 July 2024, the new version clarifies the threshold for the ownership test...more
On 24 June 2024, the European Union (EU) adopted its 14th sanctions package directed against Russia, imposing an asset freeze against an additional 116 individuals and entities and expanding sectoral sanctions targeting key...more
7/26/2024
/ Asset Freeze ,
Compensation ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Energy Sector ,
Enforcement ,
EU ,
Exit Transactions ,
Export Controls ,
Federal Bans ,
Financial Institutions ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Investment ,
Liability ,
Liquid Natural Gas ,
Risk Assessment ,
Russia ,
Trade Policy ,
Trade Secrets ,
Voluntary Disclosure
On 23 February 2024, the European Union (EU) adopted a 13th package of sanctions against Russia, imposing asset freezes on additional individuals and entities, expanding existing sectoral sanctions and further limiting...more
3/11/2024
/ Asset Freeze ,
Blocking Sanctions ,
Economic Sanctions ,
EU ,
Export Controls ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Transactions ,
New Guidance ,
Russia ,
Technology Sector ,
Trade Restrictions ,
Ukraine
The oversight obligations of boards continue to expand. Recent enforcement actions and new laws in areas such as cybersecurity, artificial intelligence and supply chains create new challenges for boards, as we explain in this...more
2/19/2024
/ Acquisitions ,
Activist ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
Board of Directors ,
Canada ,
China ,
Competition ,
Corporate Governance ,
Cyber Incident Reporting ,
Cybersecurity ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
EU ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Contractors ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Forced Labor ,
Germany ,
International Labor Laws ,
Life Sciences ,
Machine Learning ,
Manufacturers ,
Mergers ,
NGOs ,
Political Campaigns ,
Political Contributions ,
Political Conventions ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Risk Assessment ,
Risk Management ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Shareholder Activism ,
Shareholders ,
Technology Sector ,
UK ,
Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA)
Key Points -
- The number of activist campaigns launched against European companies rose again in 2023, with a new focus on German targets.
- Many activists surveyed believe that France offers them good opportunities.
-...more
2/15/2024
/ Acquisitions ,
Board of Directors ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Corporate Governance ,
EU ,
Foreign Corporations ,
France ,
Germany ,
Mergers ,
Shareholder Activism ,
Shareholders
On 28 December 2023, the French government adopted decree number 2023-1293 (Decree), together with an administrative order of the same date (Order), that expanded the scope of covered investments and covered activities under...more
On 18 December 2023, the European Union adopted a 12th package of sanctions against Russia. The sanctions impose an asset freeze on more than 140 individuals and entities pursuant to Council Regulation (EU) 269/2014...more
1/9/2024
/ Asset Freeze ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Energy Sector ,
EU ,
Export Controls ,
Imports ,
Oil & Gas ,
Popular ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Russia ,
SDN List ,
Trade Restrictions
On 7 September 2023, the European Commission (Commission) published a guidance note (the Guidance) for EU businesses on the circumvention of sanctions. The Guidance outlines the essential components for a company’s compliance...more
9/29/2023
/ Best Practices ,
Compliance ,
Due Diligence ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
Financial Institutions ,
New Guidance ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Risk Assessment ,
Russia ,
Sanctions
The new sanctions focus particularly on preventing the circumvention of EU sanctions rules through the jurisdictions of third countries. The EU has published lists of dual-use goods and advanced technology items (so-called...more
The European Union (EU)’s tenth package of sanctions against Russia, adopted 25 February 2023, imposed an asset freeze against 121 individuals and entities and expanded the scope of sectoral sanctions....more
On 23 December 2022, the French government issued decree number 2022-1622, which extended to 31 December 2023 the interim rule, in effect for two years now, that lowered the threshold that triggers foreign investment review...more
On 16 December 2022, the European Union (EU) adopted a ninth package of sanctions against Russia. These impose an asset freeze on almost 200 additional individuals and entities pursuant to Council Regulation No. 269/20141...more
12/23/2022
/ Asset Freeze ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Corporate Governance ,
Economic Sanctions ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
Export Controls ,
Financial Institutions ,
Foreign Entities ,
Investment ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Russia ,
SDN List ,
Trade Restrictions ,
UK
On 5 December 2022 the $60 per barrel price cap on Russian crude oil announced by the G-7 finance ministers in September 2022 came into effect in the United States, European Union and United Kingdom. The price cap is...more
12/22/2022
/ Crude Oil ,
EU ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
G7 ,
General Licenses ,
Oil & Gas ,
Oil Prices ,
Popular ,
Russia ,
UK
On September 8, 2022, the French Ministry of the Economy’s (MOE) General Treasury Department published its first set of guidelines on French foreign direct investment (FDI) control....more
In light of the recent referendums and purported annexation by Russia of four territories of Ukraine on September 30, 2022, the United States, United Kingdom and European Union have expanded measures and provided additional...more
10/14/2022
/ Biden Administration ,
Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
EU ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
Foreign Policy ,
Foreign Relations ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Russia ,
UK ,
Ukraine
In recent months, the European Union and United Kingdom have adopted additional measures targeting key elements of the Russian economy in response to the invasion of Ukraine. Specifically, the EU and UK continue to expand the...more
8/5/2022
/ Asset Freeze ,
Economic Sanctions ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
Foreign Policy ,
Foreign Relations ,
Oil & Gas ,
Popular ,
Russia ,
UK
Since the publication of our March 24, 2022, and March 17, 2022, client alerts, the U.S., U.K. and European Union, among other allied nations, have imposed additional sanctions and export controls on key elements of the...more
5/2/2022
/ Blocking Sanctions ,
Economic Sanctions ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
Financial Institutions ,
Foreign Policy ,
Foreign Relations ,
General Licenses ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Popular ,
Russia ,
UK
Since the publication of our 9 March 2022 client alert, the US, UK and EU and other allied nations have imposed additional sanctions and export controls on key elements of the Russian economy. This client alert summarizes the...more
3/25/2022
/ Asset Freeze ,
Belarus ,
Blocking Sanctions ,
Economic Sanctions ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
Export Controls ,
Russia ,
Tariffs ,
UK ,
Ukraine
This year, we expect to see new disclosure requirements; rule changes at the Securities and Exchange Commission that will affect directors; activists adopting new tactics; changes to shareholder voting processes; tax and...more
Takeaways -
Since 2018, the U.S. and several other countries have revised or installed national security-related screening of foreign direct investments.
Many jurisdictions now require filings for investments in the...more
Le 25 novembre 2020, la Cour de cassation a opéré un revirement de jurisprudence important pour la pratique des affaires, en décidant que la responsabilité pénale d’une société absorbée, de nature à donner lieu à une peine...more
On July 23, 2020, the French government issued decree nº 2020-892 of July 22, 2020 (the Decree), and a ministerial order of the same date (together, the Interim Rules), which lowered the applicable threshold that triggers...more
7/29/2020
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Covered Transactions ,
Foreign Acquisitions ,
Foreign Investment ,
France ,
Interim Rule ,
Non-EEA Firms ,
Non-EU Investors ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Temporary Regulations ,
Threshold Requirements ,
Voting Shares
On April 29, 2020, the French Minister of the Economy (the Minister) announced that French foreign investment rules will be adopted with the policy goal of protecting French strategic assets in the context of the COVID-19...more
5/5/2020
/ Acquisitions ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
Biotechnology ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Energy Sector ,
European Economic Area (EEA) ,
Foreign Investment ,
France ,
Innovative Technology ,
Merger Controls ,
Mergers ,
National Security ,
Non-EU Investors ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Threshold Requirements
To mitigate the risks faced by French financial markets during this unprecedented period of disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the French Financial Markets Authority (AMF) announced on April 15, 2020, that it will...more
On December 31, 2019, the French government issued decree nº 2019-1590 (the 2019 Decree), together with an administrative order of the same date (the Order), that comprehensively reshaped French foreign investment rules (as...more