The U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) issued a series of significant updates affecting export controls on advanced computing integrated circuits (ICs), artificial intelligence (AI)...more
Howard Lutnick has been confirmed as Secretary of Commerce, while Jeffrey Kessler has been nominated for Under Secretary for Industry and Security. Both have more experience with trade policy and tariffs than with export...more
2/20/2025
/ America First Trade Policy ,
Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
China ,
Executive Orders ,
Export Controls ,
International Trade ,
National Security ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Freeze ,
Trade Relations ,
Trump Administration
On January 20, 2025, President Trump signed the National Security Presidential Memorandum (NSPM-1), which lays out the framework for how the National Security Council (NSC) will be organized under his administration. The...more
Key Points - On May 21, 2024, the DOJ announced its first ever declination under the NSD’s updated Enforcement Policy, declining to prosecute Sigma-Aldrich Inc., d/b/a MilliporeSigma (a subsidiary of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt,...more
6/7/2024
/ Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC) ,
Enforcement ,
Export Controls ,
Incentives ,
National Security ,
Non-Prosecution Agreements ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Sanction Violations ,
Self-Disclosure Requirements ,
Voluntary Disclosure ,
White Collar Crimes
While media reporting has predominantly focused on the provisions in the emergency foreign aid package that President Biden signed into law on April 24, 2024 that provides funding for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, House Foreign...more
5/1/2024
/ Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Drug Trafficking ,
Economic Sanctions ,
International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) ,
National Security ,
New Legislation ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Sanction Violations ,
Statute of Limitations ,
TWEA
Executive Summary -
- On March 7, 2024, the NSD of the DOJ issued an updated NSD Enforcement Policy to include a new section covering VSDs in connection with mergers and acquisitions.
- These updates follow repeated...more
3/19/2024
/ Acquisitions ,
Corporate Governance ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Due Diligence ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Mergers ,
National Security ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Whistleblower Awards ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies ,
Whistleblowers
On July 26, 2023, the departments of Commerce, Justice and the Treasury issued their second ever to date “Tri-Seal Compliance Note” (the “Note”). It describes expectations for the voluntary disclosure of sanctions, export,...more
8/7/2023
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Export Controls ,
National Security ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Popular ,
Sanction Violations ,
U.S. Commerce Department ,
U.S. Treasury ,
Voluntary Disclosure
Key Points -
On March 2, 2023, DOJ announced that its NSD would hire more than 25 new prosecutors to investigate and prosecute sanctions evasion, export controls violations and similar economic crimes. Consistent with...more
Key Points -
The United States, European Union, United Kingdom and other U.S. allies are currently considering a range of severe economic measures against Russia to impose in the event of a Russian military incursion into...more
1/31/2022
/ Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
Export Controls ,
Financial Institutions ,
Foreign Policy ,
National Security ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Pipelines ,
Russia ,
Sanctions ,
SDN List ,
Ukraine
On October 18, 2021, the U.S. Treasury Department released a long awaited report on its first of its kind “top to bottom” review of U.S. economic and financial sanctions. The report does not make or recommend any immediate or...more
Key Points
- On January 19, 2021, the U.S. Commerce Department published an interim final rule (IFR) to implement Executive Order 13873 of May 15, 2019, on “Securing the Information and Communications Technology and...more
2/11/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
CFIUS ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Foreign Adversaries ,
Interim Final Rules (IFR) ,
International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) ,
National Security ,
Personal Data ,
Prohibited Transactions ,
Public Comment ,
Sensitive Personal Information ,
Technology Sector ,
U.S. Commerce Department
- The U.S. Department of Commerce has published a highly complex and novel interim final rule extending the controls of the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) over foreign-made items in Huawei’s contract manufacturing...more
5/21/2020
/ Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
Comment Period ,
Entity List ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
Foreign Direct Product Rule ,
Foreign Policy ,
General Licenses ,
Huawei ,
Interim Final Rules (IFR) ,
Manufacturers ,
National Security ,
Prohibited Transactions ,
Public Comment ,
Supply Chain ,
Technology Sector ,
Telecommunications ,
U.S. Commerce Department
- On April 28, 2020, the Bureau of Industry and Security of the U.S. Department of Commerce announced changes to the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) through three notices published on the Federal Register. The changes...more
4/30/2020
/ Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
Exceptions ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
Final Rules ,
General Licenses ,
Licensing Rules ,
Military End Use ,
National Security ,
Proposed Rules ,
U.S. Commerce Department
• On May 20, 2019, the U.S. Department of Commerce published a 90-day Temporary General License (TGL) authorizing limited categories of exports, reexports, or transfers that are otherwise prohibited pursuant to the addition...more
5/22/2019
/ Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
Entity List ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
Foreign Policy ,
General Licenses ,
Huawei ,
Manufacturers ,
National Security ,
Prohibited Transactions ,
Supply Chain ,
Technology Sector ,
Telecommunications ,
U.S. Commerce Department
• On May 16, 2019, the U.S. Department of Commerce published a final rule adding Huawei and 68 other companies, mostly its non-U.S. affiliates worldwide, to the Entity List... The rule will be officially published in the...more
5/20/2019
/ Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
Entity List ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
Final Rules ,
Foreign Policy ,
General Licenses ,
Huawei ,
National Security ,
Technology Sector ,
U.S. Commerce Department
• On May 15, 2019, President Trump issued a long-awaited E.O. designed to curtail the use of telecommunications items and services from certain countries and persons in U.S. networks. The E.O. does not impose immediate...more
5/16/2019
/ CFIUS ,
China ,
Executive Orders ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
Export Controls ,
Foreign Policy ,
Infrastructure ,
International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) ,
Jurisdiction ,
National Security ,
New Regulations ,
Telecommunications ,
Trade Relations ,
Trump Administration
• OFAC recently added a Moscow-based Russian-Venezuelan joint venture bank, Evrofinance Mosnarbank (“Evrofinance”), to the List of Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons (the “SDN List”) for engaging in sanctions...more
3/29/2019
/ Banking Sector ,
Blocked Person ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Financial Institutions ,
Foreign Policy ,
General Licenses ,
Joint Venture ,
National Security ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Oil & Gas ,
Russia ,
SDN List ,
Trump Administration ,
Venezuela
On April 6, 2018, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the U.S. Treasury Department sanctioned a number of Russian businessmen and companies, as well as Russian government officials and two state-owned entities. The...more
U.S. lawmakers recently submitted a letter to the Government Accountability Office (GAO) raising concerns about increased Chinese investments in the U.S. film and entertainment industry and questioning whether the Committee...more
On March 9, 2015, following failed diplomatic efforts to bring Venezuela in line with its human rights commitments under international law, President Obama issued an Executive Order (E.O.) declaring Venezuela a national...more