The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), an agency of the U.S. Department of the Treasury, administers and enforces U.S. economic sanctions programs against targeted foreign governments, individuals, groups and entities...more
5/8/2019
/ Audits ,
Chief Compliance Officers ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Corporate Officers ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Internal Controls ,
National Security ,
New Guidance ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Risk Assessment ,
Senior Managers
On November 28, 2018, the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), announced an action against two Iranian citizens, Ali Khorashadizadeh and Mohammad Ghorbaniyan, who facilitated the exchange of...more
The Foreign Investment Risk Review Modernization Act of 2018 (FIRRMA) became law on August 13, 2018. Under FIRRMA, the Committee of Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) is authorized to conduct pilot programs. On...more
10/24/2018
/ Board of Directors ,
CFIUS ,
Covered Transactions ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Federal Pilot Programs ,
FIRRMA ,
Foreign Investment ,
Interim Rule ,
Joint Venture ,
Mandatory Declarations ,
NAICS ,
National Security ,
U.S. Treasury
On October 11, 2018, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) released an advisory (the Advisory) intended to help money services businesses (MSBs) and foreign financial institutions...more
The United States will reimpose sanctions against Iran to implement President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), a multilateral agreement under which Iran agreed to curb...more
As competitors in federal negotiated procurements recognize, post-award debriefings are an important feature of the procurement process. Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 15.506 has long mandated that an unsuccessful...more
On January 19, 2018, the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), in response to a question, warned that a U.S. person’s acquisition of, or dealing in, a cryptocurrency that Venezuela intends to issue in the future may...more
A recent federal appeals court decision addresses a familiar issue for many companies: When can a U.S. exporter be liable for a product that is re-exported to a sanctioned country, such as Iran? This update summarizes the...more
6/9/2017
/ Appeals ,
Corporate Liability ,
Distributors ,
Due Diligence ,
Electronics ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
Iran ,
Iran Sanctions ,
ITSR ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Sanction Violations ,
United Arab Emirates (UAE)
On the campaign trail, President-elect Trump adopted a contentious approach towards foreign trade, focusing on Chinese “theft of American trade secrets” and suggesting, at times, potential isolationism for U.S. businesses....more
1/20/2017
/ CFIUS ,
China ,
Cross-Border Transactions ,
Foreign Acquisitions ,
Foreign Investment ,
GAO ,
National Security ,
Trade Policy ,
Trade Relations ,
Trans-Pacific Partnership ,
Trump Administration ,
U.S. Treasury ,
Voluntary Disclosure
The United States suspended certain “secondary sanctions” against Iran that apply to non-U.S. companies for transactions that take place outside of the United States and do not involve U.S. persons on “Implementation Day,”...more
The Department of Defense (DoD) issued an interim cybersecurity rule in August 2015 that, among other things, revises the existing Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) cybersecurity clause and increases...more
10/26/2015
/ Cloud Computing ,
Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) ,
Cyber Incident Reporting ,
Cyber Threats ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Protection ,
Data Security ,
Department of Defense (DOD) ,
DFARS ,
Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Incident Response Plans ,
Interim Rule ,
NIST ,
Reporting Requirements
When the White House recently announced that it was extending sanctions against Russia for another year, it cited a continued “unusual and extraordinary threat” from Russia’s activities in Ukraine. President Obama also...more
Companies that contract with the federal government will soon be subject to new rules aimed to stamp out human trafficking (see discussion of some of the existing rules and regulations here and here). The just-released...more
During the same week that President Barack Obama announced sweeping changes in the diplomatic and trade relationships between the United States and Cuba, the president signed congressional legislation authorizing additional...more
1/7/2015
/ Banking Sector ,
Barack Obama ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Crimea ,
Cuba ,
Defense Sector ,
Drug Trafficking ,
Energy Sector ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
Executive Orders ,
Export Controls ,
Illegal Arms Dealers ,
North Korea ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Popular ,
Russia ,
Sanctions ,
SDN List ,
Ukraine ,
US Trade Policies ,
Venezuela
On December 17, 2014, President Barack Obama announced sweeping changes in the diplomatic and trade relationships between the United States and Cuba. These changes, outlined below, will require time to implement; certain...more
On September 3, 2014, the Department of Defense (DoD) issued a proposed rule updating its policies and procedures implementing the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), including FOIA Exemption 4. FOIA Exemption 4 exempts from...more
U.S. government agencies announced this week that they have suspended issuing export licenses to companies sending or releasing sensitive goods, services and technology to Russia. This development will prevent companies from...more
Events are rapidly evolving with respect to Russia’s recent military incursion into, and subsequent annexation of, Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula. The Obama Administration considers Russia’s acts to be clear violations of...more
Imagine that your company is a contract holder under a U.S. Army multiple award, indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity (IDIQ) contract. The Army issues a request for proposal for a firm, fixed-priced task order, and your...more
The United States agreed to suspend certain sanctions against Iran over the weekend as part of an agreement to curb the Iranian nuclear program. The agreement, which provides for a six-month first step towards a...more