On March 24, 2022, the EU Parliament and Council negotiators agreed on the wording of new EU rules to limit the market power of big online platforms. The EU Digital Markets Act (DMA) will prohibit certain practices used by...more
UK DEVELOPMENTS - Further designations - On 10 March 2022, the UK Government added a further seven oligarchs to its list of sanctions targets, including the owner of Chelsea football club, Roman Abramovich. ...more
Overseas investors are welcome in the UK. Save as set out below, there are no specific laws prohibiting foreign investment in the UK nor are there any business requirements for UK participation in the ownership or management...more
3/9/2022
/ Capital Gains ,
Certificates of Incorporation ,
Corporate Taxes ,
Excise Tax ,
Financing ,
Loans ,
Profits ,
Shareholders ,
Startups ,
UK ,
UK Brexit ,
UK GDPR ,
Value-Added Tax (VAT)
The EU and UK have imposed additional export controls and sanctions with respect to Russia and Belarus connected to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Below is a summary of key developments over recent days since our last blog...more
3/3/2022
/ Airspace ,
Asset Freeze ,
Belarus ,
Belarus Sanctions ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Export Controls ,
Foreign Relations ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Russia ,
UK ,
Ukraine
As the Russian invasion of Ukraine continues, the global pressure on the Putin regime intensifies with the EU issuing additional sanctions and export controls on Friday evening (February 25). The legislation implementing the...more
3/1/2022
/ Asset Freeze ,
Blocked Person ,
Economic Sanctions ,
EU ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
Financial Institutions ,
Foreign Policy ,
General Licenses ,
Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) ,
Russia ,
UK ,
Ukraine
The EU and UK have imposed further sanctions in response to the invasion of Ukraine and the recognition by Russia of the Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics (“DNR” and “LNR”) of Ukraine as independent territories....more
Despite months of posturing and growing geopolitical tensions, Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine this week was a shock to the global community. Western leaders have been swift and unanimous in their response, condemning...more
2/28/2022
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Asset Freeze ,
Biden Administration ,
Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
ECCNs ,
Economic Sanctions ,
EU ,
Executive Orders ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
General Licenses ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Russia ,
SDN List ,
UK ,
Ukraine
The EU takes a major step to expand sanctions on economically important companies and industrial groups, with twenty-two (22) individuals and four (4) entities now added to restrictive measures.
Those designated include...more
Initial Global Sanctions on Russia in Response to Events in Eastern Ukraine - In response to President Putin’s televised recognition of Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics (“DNR” and “LNR”) of Ukraine as “independent”...more
From February 21, 2022, the format of the UK Sanctions List and the UK Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) consolidated list will be different. Businesses must take steps to ensure their systems and processes...more
On December 8, 2021 the EU Commission published its proposal for a new “Anti-Coercion Instrument.” The regulation is being proposed in response to targeted deliberate economic pressures applied to the EU and its Member States...more
The European Data Protection Board (EDPB), the body which represents EU data protection authorities, has adopted guidelines (Guidelines) confirming when transfers need to be “safeguarded” in accordance with the GDPR (and...more
This week the European Data Protection Board (EDPB), a body that represents European data protection authorities, set up a new cookie banner taskforce. The new taskforce will coordinate the response to over 400 complaints...more
The guidance outlines how organisations should approach international transfers and confirms examples of supplemental measures that can be adopted to ensure ongoing compliance and seeking to de-mystify earlier...more
6/30/2021
/ Binding Corporate Rules ,
Corporate Counsel ,
EU-US Privacy Shield ,
European Court of Justice (ECJ) ,
European Data Protection Board (EDPB) ,
FISA ,
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) ,
International Data Transfers ,
New Guidance ,
Personal Data ,
Schrems I & Schrems II ,
Standard Contractual Clauses ,
UK ,
UK GDPR
The European Commission’s decision of 4 June 2021 finalises the new SCCs for transferring personal data from the EEA.
After invalidation of the Privacy Shield by Europe’s top court, many businesses came to rely upon...more
On April 26, 2021, the UK announced a new global anti-corruption sanctions regime and has imposed sanctions on 22 people whom the UK Government has reasonable grounds to suspect have been involved in serious corruption. Under...more
U.S., UK and EU authorities continue to expand sanctions targeting the Tatmadaw, Myanmar’s armed forces, following the February 17, 2021, military coup in Myanmar (also known as Burma). Over the past month, the United States...more
On 22 March 2021, the EU added 11 Burmese officials responsible for last month’s military coup in Myanmar to its sanctions list. The designations are made in response to “the illegitimate over-throwing of the...more
On January 19, the European Commission released a strategy intended to “stimulate the openness, strength and resilience of the EU’s economic and financial system.” One of the key pillars of the strategy is centered around...more
Following the UK’s withdrawal from the EU, effective 11 pm UK time on 31 December 2020, the UK (with the exception of Northern Ireland in some cases) no longer automatically implements EU laws.
This has brought about...more
Just one day before New Year’s Eve, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, EU Council President Charles Michel and UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson finally signed the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement.
Effective as...more
1/4/2021
/ Corporate Counsel ,
Data Collection ,
Dispute Resolution ,
Energy Sector ,
EU ,
Exports ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Free Trade Agreements ,
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) ,
Imports ,
Paris Agreement ,
Personal Data ,
Popular ,
Tariffs ,
UK ,
UK Brexit
The EU’s new global human rights sanctions regime came into force on December 8. Council Regulation (EU) 2020/1998 provides for the freezing of funds and economic resources and travel bans on those responsible for or involved...more
The EDPB has issued recommendations concerning how organisations may lawfully transfer personal data from Europe to “third countries” (e.g., the U.S. and currently the UK from 1.1.2021) in light of the recent Schrems II...more
11/25/2020
/ EU-US Privacy Shield ,
European Commission ,
European Court of Justice (ECJ) ,
European Data Protection Board (EDPB) ,
European Economic Area (EEA) ,
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) ,
International Data Transfers ,
Legal Systems ,
New Guidance ,
Schrems I & Schrems II ,
Standard Contractual Clauses ,
UK
Trans-Atlantic transfer scheme relied on by thousands of EU and U.S. organisations to transfer personal data from the EU to the U.S. deemed invalid by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU).
Privacy Shield has...more
7/17/2020
/ Binding Corporate Rules ,
Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) ,
EU ,
EU-US Privacy Shield ,
Executive Orders ,
FISA ,
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) ,
International Data Transfers ,
Personal Data ,
Safe Harbors ,
Standard Contractual Clauses
As we’ve discussed previously, in 2018, the UK enacted the Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act (the Act), allowing it to impose its own post-Brexit autonomous sanctions regime. On July 6, 2020, the UK imposed its first...more