At a New York City Bar Association event on April 27, Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco described economic sanctions as “the new FCPA.” Her characterization should put corporate compliance departments on notice. ...more
5/6/2022
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Compliance Management Systems ,
Corruption ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Export Controls ,
FCPA Guidance ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Internal Controls ,
Military Conflict ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Russia ,
Ukraine ,
White Collar Crimes
A jury in the United States District Court for the District of Colorado acquitted a Denver-based healthcare company, DaVita Inc., and its former CEO on three counts each of conspiracy in restraint of trade under the Sherman...more
On Wednesday, March 9, President Biden issued an Executive Order entitled Ensuring Responsible Development of Digital Assets. The President’s order represents the first time that the White House has sought to develop a...more
4/5/2022
/ Biden Administration ,
Bitcoin ,
Blockchain ,
Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDCs) ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Executive Orders ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Financial Transactions ,
Investment Contract ,
Investor Protection ,
Regulatory Agenda
On February 23, 2022, the Department of Justice announced that it would no longer be grouping cases under the "China Initiative" rubric, citing the "harmful perception" of racial or ethnic bias the use of that nomenclature...more
Senators Josh Hawley and Kristen Gillibrand re-introduced new legislation on February 3, 2022, aimed at combatting the use of forced labor in supply chains worldwide. This move comes on the heels of the December 2021 passage,...more
2/17/2022
/ Biden Administration ,
Child Labor ,
China ,
Customs and Border Protection ,
Forced Labor ,
Foreign Policy ,
Foreign Relations ,
Human Rights ,
Imports ,
New Legislation ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Slavery ,
Supply Chain ,
Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA)
There is an increasing legislative trend towards holding companies accountable for their own ESG practices as well as those of business partners within their supply chain.
...more
The Department of Justice on November 19, 2021, updated its online information sheet about its ongoing China Initiative, which “reflects the [DOJ’s] strategic priority of countering Chinese national security threats” by...more
12/7/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
China ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Data Protection ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Priorities ,
Espionage ,
Foreign Relations ,
Hackers ,
Trade Secrets
The United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas recently recognized new constitutional and extraterritorial limits on the FCPA. In an order entered November 10, 2021, the court held that it lacked...more
12/3/2021
/ Bribery ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Due Process ,
Extraterritoriality Rules ,
Foreign Agents ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Indictments ,
Jurisdiction ,
Kickbacks ,
Money Laundering ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Vagueness ,
White Collar Crimes
Introduction -
China’s top anti-corruption watchdogs recently released a new anti-bribery Guideline designed to focus on multi-national corporations and individuals that pay bribes in China, as opposed to bribe recipients,...more
Whether a cryptocurrency product is a security is an issue with serious regulatory consequences. In recent years, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) has taken a broad position that various crypto assets are...more
11/19/2021
/ Bitcoin ,
Blockchain ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Financial Instruments ,
Financial Markets ,
Howey ,
Investment Contract ,
Investment Opportunities ,
Popular ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Virtual Currency
As we recently noted in our OnPoint dated October 20, 2021, the rise in interest from retail and institutional investors in the cryptocurrency market has attracted increased regulatory and enforcement attention in the past...more
11/17/2021
/ Bitcoin ,
Capital Gains ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Currency ,
Enforcement Priorities ,
Financial Transactions ,
Income Taxes ,
Internal Revenue Code (IRC) ,
Investment ,
IRS ,
Popular ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Tax Liability ,
Tax Planning ,
Tax Reform ,
Virtual Currency
Key Takeaways - The Department of Justice (“DOJ”) recently announced a new initiative to aggressively pursue lenders who engage in the discriminatory practice of “redlining.” The DOJ, along with the Consumer Financial...more
Key Takeaways - The federal government has the cryptocurrency market in its crosshairs. Specifically, the DOJ, SEC and CFTC have all continued to make announcements and show interest in regulating cryptocurrency and enforcing...more
Key Takeaways: The Third, Sixth, Seventh, and Ninth Circuit Courts of Appeals have recognized the doctrine of federal common law successor liability for claims brought under certain federal labor and employment statutes,...more
Key Takeaways - On October 3, 2021, the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists released the “Pandora Papers,” which expose the use by political leaders, billionaires, and others of offshore entities in an...more
Key Takeaways - Clauses that bar corporations from making public statements that contradict the stipulated factual basis for a plea or deferred prosecution agreement have become common. ...more
Key Takeaways - In its just-issued opinion in Nestle USA, Inc. v. Doe, No. 19-416, slip op. (2021), the Supreme Court reaffirmed its holding from Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum Co., 569 U. S. 108 (2013), that the Alien Tort...more
President Joseph Biden on January 20, 2021, made news with his Inauguration Day flurry of executive orders. Potentially lost in the shuffle, however, was the Executive Order on Ethics Commitments, which required “every...more
On October 23, 2020, the Illinois Supreme Court amended its rules, which apply to all criminal proceedings in the state of Illinois, to expand criminal defendants’ access to discovery materials. Specifically, the court...more
On October 21, 2020, President Donald J. Trump signed the Due Process Protections Act, S. 1380, which provides additional protections for criminal defendants’ due process right to receive material exculpatory evidence from...more
Amid escalating tensions between the United States and China over the last few years, the United States Department of Justice (“DOJ”) has formally prioritized criminal prosecutions of Chinese nationals and companies, and...more
10/29/2020
/ CFIUS ,
China ,
China Initiative ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Economic Espionage Act ,
FBI ,
FIRRMA ,
Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Foreign Entities ,
Foreign Nationals ,
Hackers ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Joe Biden ,
National Security ,
Presidential Elections ,
RICO ,
Trade Secrets ,
Trump Administration ,
United States
Key Takeaways -
The United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit recently issued a decision providing new guidance on how to draft amicus briefs that the court will accept for filing.
The court stressed the...more
Weeks ago, on September 14 2020, the Trump Administration made news by announcing a ban on the importation of certain products made in China’s Xinjiang region, where widespread human rights abuses—including slave labor work...more
10/6/2020
/ China ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Customs and Border Protection ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Federal Bans ,
Federal Food Drug and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA) ,
Forced Labor ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Human Rights ,
Imports ,
Park Doctrine ,
Supply Chain ,
Trump Administration ,
US Trade Policies
With the U.S. presidential election less than 50 days away, pardon season is ramping up, and it is likely to be especially active after the election results. In our experience—one author served as a federal prosecutor, one...more
Last month, in two separate OnPoints we highlighted decisions of the Sixth Circuit and Ninth Circuit that reversed the dismissal of Title IX claims challenging university sexual assault disciplinary proceedings and their...more