On June 14, 2024, U.S. Department of Commerce Assistant Secretary for Export Enforcement, Matthew Axelrod, officially issued an order activating the suspended portion of a civil penalty that was imposed on U.S-based freight...more
6/26/2024
/ Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
China ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
Foreign Policy ,
Regulatory Violations ,
Settlement Agreements ,
U.S. Commerce Department ,
United Arab Emirates (UAE)
Organizations with operations in California are reminded of the upcoming July 1, 2024 deadline to comply with the provisions of S.B. 553—a bill that was signed into law by Governor Gavin Newsom on September 20, 2023,...more
6/25/2024
/ Cal-OSHA ,
California ,
Compliance ,
Deadlines ,
Employee Training ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Labor Code ,
Labor Reform ,
New Legislation ,
Policies and Procedures ,
State Labor Laws ,
Workplace Safety ,
Workplace Violence ,
Workplace Violence Prevention Programs
On May 30, 2024, following passage by the European Parliament in late April, the European Council officially adopted a set of rules that modernizes and harmonizes money laundering and terrorist financing (“AML/CFT”)...more
6/19/2024
/ AML/CFT ,
Anti-Corruption ,
Anti-Money Laundering ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Cross-Border Transactions ,
EU ,
EU Directive ,
Financial Crimes ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Transactions ,
Money Laundering ,
New Rules ,
Terrorism Funding ,
Terrorist Financing Regulations ,
White Collar Crimes
On June 3, 2024, the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (“BIS”) announced the resolution of an administrative enforcement action brought against Airbus DS Government Solutions (“Airbus DSGS”)—a...more
6/12/2024
/ Airbus ,
Antiboycott Requirements ,
Boycotts ,
Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
Compliance ,
Defense Sector ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
Popular ,
Statutory Violations ,
U.S. Commerce Department
On May 17, 2024, Nevada-based DXC Technology Company (“DXC”)—a global IT services provider—officially filed its required annual 10-K Form with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) indicating that...more
On April 29, 2024, the U.S. Department of Commerce officially published a final rule in the Federal Register that formally incorporates a medical device license exception into the Export Administration Regulations (“EAR”) for...more
5/16/2024
/ Belarus ,
Commodities ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
Foreign Policy ,
Healthcare ,
Licensing Rules ,
Medical Devices ,
New Rules ,
Russia ,
U.S. Commerce Department ,
Ukraine
On April 24, 2024, the European Union (“EU”) officially adopted Directive (EU) 2024/1226 on the definition of criminal offenses and penalties for the violation of Union restrictive measures and amending Directive (EU)...more
On March 28, 2024, the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (“BIS”) released updated guidance to freight forwarders specifically outlining their responsibilities under the aegis of the Export...more
On April 19, 2024, the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (“BIS”) published an interim final rule (“IFR”) that officially codifies certain changes to the Export Administration Regulations (“EAR”)...more
On April 15, 2023 Nicole Argentieri, Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General and the Head of the U.S. Department of Justice’s (“DOJ’s”) Criminal Division, announced a new voluntary self-disclosure program for individuals...more
Remarks given by Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo and Undersecretary Alan Estevez during the 2024 Policy Update Conference sponsored by the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (“BIS”) emphasized the...more
Challenges may arise when conducting an internal investigation related to an underlying disclosure by a whistleblower pursuant to the EU Directive, because companies must strictly comply with the GDPR. Failure to comply with...more
3/29/2024
/ Compliance ,
Consent ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Data Management ,
Data Processing Rules ,
Data Protection ,
Data Protection Impact Assessments (DPIAs) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
EU ,
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) ,
Internal Investigations ,
Internal Reporting ,
Whistleblowers
Since its enactment in 2019, the European Union (“EU”) Directive on Whistleblowing 2019/1931 (“EU Directive”) has required all 27 EU Member States to incorporate certain requirements pertaining to the protection of...more
According to the terms of a superseding information made public by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York on or about February 13, 2024, Mauricio Gomez Baez (“Baez”)—a former Stericycle executive for...more
The sheer proliferation of supply chain transparency and accountability regulations at international scale itself warrants a closer look at the level of scrutiny required of organizations with complex, multi-faceted, global,...more
3/7/2024
/ Audits ,
Compliance ,
Due Diligence ,
Exploitation ,
Export Controls ,
Forced Labor ,
Human Rights ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Risk Management ,
Suppliers ,
Supply Chain ,
Sustainability ,
Third-Party Service Provider ,
Transparency
News recently published by multiple media outlets suggest that certain subcomponents incorporated into a variety of Volkswagen-owned vehicles—including cars manufactured by luxe brands Porsche, Bentley and Audi—were sourced...more
2/20/2024
/ Automotive Industry ,
China ,
Compliance ,
Customs and Border Protection ,
Forced Labor ,
Goods or Services ,
Human Rights ,
Importers ,
Imports ,
Popular ,
Supply Chain ,
US Trade Policies ,
Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) ,
Volkswagen
The past two years brought heightened scrutiny to supply chain risks and human rights violations, and time is running out to ensure your organization is compliant with the recent regulation updates and policy...more
2/19/2024
/ Business Operations ,
Due Diligence ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
EU ,
Human Rights ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Risk Management ,
Supply Chain ,
Sustainability ,
Transparency ,
Webinars
On February 1, 2024, President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. promulgated Executive Order 14115 (“E.O. 14115), the effect of which is to impose economic sanctions on individuals ostensibly contributing to gratuitous violence and...more
Wabtec Corporation (“Wabtec”)—a global manufacturer and supplier of rail technology headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania—recently settled an administrative enforcement proceeding with the U.S. Department of Commerce’s...more
2/8/2024
/ Antiboycott Requirements ,
Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
Export Controls ,
Foreign Policy ,
Foreign Relations ,
Regulatory Violations ,
US Trade Policies
On January 16, 2024, the U.S Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (“BIS”) released a series of enhancements to its existing voluntary self disclosure (“VSD”) program, pursuant to which organizations...more
On December 31, 2021, President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. signed the the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (“UFLPA”) into law to address the ongoing exploitation of the ethnic minority Uyghur population by the government of the...more
1/25/2024
/ China ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Customs and Border Protection ,
Entity List ,
Exploitation ,
Forced Labor ,
Foreign Policy ,
Human Rights ,
Popular ,
Supply Chain ,
Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA)
As global political tensions continued to escalate on multiple fronts, the 2023 calendar year saw a noticeable increase in the number of enforcement actions initiated by the U.S. government against entities and individuals...more
On December 14, 2023, Congress passed the Foreign Extortion Prevention Act (“FEPA”) in an effort to address certain deficiencies inherent in the current iteration of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (“FCPA”), as part of the...more
1/9/2024
/ Anti-Bribery ,
Anti-Corruption ,
Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
FEPA ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Foreign Official ,
NDAA ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
White Collar Crimes
On December 22, 2023, President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. issued an executive order—”Taking Additional Steps With Respect to the Russian Federation’s Harmful Activities”—that subjects certain foreign financial institutions that...more
1/9/2024
/ Biden Administration ,
CAPTA List ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Executive Orders ,
Financial Transactions ,
Foreign Financial Institutions (FFI) ,
Foreign Policy ,
Foreign Relations ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Russia ,
U.S. Treasury
New guidance from the Biden Administration mandates that freight forwarders are responsible for complying with trade sanctions and export compliance. On December 11, 2023, the Biden Administration released a 10-page sanctions...more
12/19/2023
/ Biden Administration ,
Compliance ,
Export Controls ,
Exporters ,
Exports ,
Freight Forwarding ,
Goods or Services ,
Motor Carriers ,
New Guidance ,
Risk Mitigation ,
Shipping ,
Shipping Cargo ,
Supply Chain ,
Trucking Industry ,
US Trade Policies ,
Vessels ,
WMD