Hughes Hubbard’s Sanctions, Export Controls & Anti-Money Laundering…

Overview

The Sanctions, Export Controls & Anti-Money Laundering practice group of Hughes Hubbard & Reed LLP helps clients navigate the full range of U.S. and EU trade and foreign investment compliance, disclosures, enforcement actions and authorizations involving the Commerce, State and Treasury departments, and the Department of Justice as well as the European Commission and national competent authorities in the EU. Our team includes thought leaders who routinely speak on, write on and discuss the changing export controls and economic sanctions landscape. The latest insights from our lawyers, including our All Things Investigations podcast and Fresh Looks series, are available on the left column of this page.

U.S.

We help legal and trade compliance professionals anticipate, understand and respond to a dynamic and often unpredictable geopolitical environment in which economic security is increasingly driven by national security concerns. In this context, we focus on helping clients unpack, explain and operationalize new developments for internal stakeholders and counterparties.

Many outbound and inbound restrictions are today driven by a new national security paradigm: the “high probability” standard that has been the lynchpin of substantial U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act enforcement — and compliance — since the early 2000s. We have unparalleled experience in helping clients identify and analyze compliance risks under this standard, and in understanding regulators’ expectations when they are applying this enforcement “playbook.”

For outbound export and investment regulations, we bring to the table decades of risk-based due diligence experience with native-language and -bar capability in both China and the EU. We help clients synthesize practical, risk-based approaches that allow them to work successfully and legally across jurisdictions to the best extent possible. We assist clients with due diligence and risks assessments related to distributors and resellers, evaluating the results of Know-Your-Customer screening, internal or external investigations or audits related to compliance with export controls and economic sanctions, and liaising where necessary with U.S. or foreign authorities to obtain necessary licenses or approvals.

For inbound investment or import controls, such as a foreign investment review process conducted by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) or the new rules under the Information and Communications Technology and Services program, we have experience helping multinational companies — both U.S. and foreign — understand and navigate inbound restrictions and secure regulatory clearance in the contexts of mergers, acquisitions or divestitures.

Additionally, we help clients to navigate the impact of U.S. tariffs on their sales and supply chains in today’s dynamic and contentious global trade environment. This includes representation in investigations launched by the Secretary of Commerce under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962. We are also well positioned to advise clients regarding “secondary” or other tariffs under consideration that may be enacted to support U.S. economic sanctions and export controls policies and priorities.

We assist both EU and U.S. clients in navigating the increasingly complex web of EU and member state laws related to economic sanctions and export controls. Our team in Paris, where we established our office in 1966, is regularly recognized as one of the leading practices in corporate compliance. We help U.S., EU and other companies operating in the EU with navigating the changing sanctions and export controls due diligence obligations imposed by the EU in current and new sanctions packages. From developing, evaluating and implementing sanctions and export controls compliance programs consistent with EU standards to guiding companies through EU foreign investment review processes run by the European Commission and national competent authorities in the EU, our talented team of lawyers understands the gravity and breadth of EU sanctions work. We also assist companies with understanding and implementing requirements related to subsidiaries and counterparties, such as “best efforts” requirements as to non-EU subsidiaries and mandatory contractual provisions for certain transactions.

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As needed, our export controls and sanctions group draws upon Hughes Hubbard’s strengths in many adjacent and intersecting areas, including international corporate transactions and joint ventures, employment, intellectual property, corporate governance, litigation, and telecommunications.

For more information on our Sanctions, Export Controls & Anti-Money Laundering Practice, please contact:

Michael H. Huneke

Co-Chair

Sean M. Reilly

Co-Chair

Together, our team has represented a wide array of U.S. and foreign companies in export controls, sanctions, and related matters before the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), the State Department’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC), the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), and before CFIUS. We have also represented a wide array of European and international companies in sanctions, export controls and related matters before national competent authorities in the EU as well as before the European Commission. We also represent industries affected by U.S. and European foreign policy and sanctions-related export controls because of the location of their business operations, including telecommunications, aerospace and defense, energy, automotive, computers, information security (encryption), freight forwarding, general manufacturing, financial and accounting services, pharmaceuticals and specialty chemicals.

Our practice draws on the experience of members of the firm’s Anti‑Corruption & Internal Investigations, Arbitration, Corporate, and White Collar & Regulatory Defense practice groups. Our team includes lawyers fluent in French, German, Italian, Spanish, Mandarin, Norwegian, Polish, Russian, among other languages, and are often dual-qualified.

Enforcement Activities

Represent companies in enforcement matters, including investigations, disclosures, administrative and criminal enforcement proceedings.
Conduct internal investigations, prepare findings, and make recommendations with respect to disclosure obligations and corrective actions.
Negotiate with government enforcement officials to minimize penalties and avoid suspension or debarment from government contracting opportunities, loss of export privileges, or other potential administrative, civil, or criminal penalties
Assist clients in post-plea agreement/settlement matters, monitorships and consent agreements.

Compliance Advice and Audits

Advise U.S. and foreign firms on Commerce Department and State Department export and re-export controls applicable to their products, technologies, and personnel; and assist in obtaining any necessary export licenses.
Assist companies on export classification and commodity jurisdiction issues and preparation of any necessary requests.
Conduct audits and risk assessments, including government-required audits.
Assist companies on encryption controls, including classification, one-time review, use of mass market exception and filing of encryption reports with the Commerce Department.
Advise U.S. and foreign clients on issues arising from U.S. “deemed export” and “deemed re-export rules” (which govern the export of technology to foreign nationals both in the U.S. and abroad) in the context of employment, presentations at academic symposia and plant visits.
Assist clients in navigating the complex world of defense trade controls, including drafting and obtaining approval of Technical Assistance Agreements and Manufacturing License Agreements, advising on exceptions available under the International Traffic in Arms Regulations, and assisting with registration.
Provide customized training and compliance materials, and assist in establishing internal company compliance programs.
Advise companies on new regulatory developments and their impact on company operations.

Sanctions, Embargoes, and Extraterritorial Reach of U.S. Export Control Laws

Advise U.S. and non-U.S. companies, including foreign operations of U.S. companies, on global business implications of U.S. embargo and economic sanctions rules with respect to countries such as Crimea, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, and Syria with the terrorism and anti-narcotics trafficking sanctions.
Assist companies in developing sanctions compliance programs and training for foreign subsidiaries.
Prepare and obtain licenses from the Office of Foreign Assets Control.
Obtain advisory opinions from the Office of Foreign Assets Control.
Obtain waivers from the Commerce Department to permit authorized activity in sanctioned countries.
Assist financial institutions with compliance responsibilities.
Provide advice in use of limited exceptions to sanctions, including temporary sojourn, government contractor, and humanitarian provisions.
Provide legal opinions in foreign legal proceedings on implications of U.S. re-export control rules for non-U.S. business transactions.
Advise clients on the applicability of the Helms-Burton law regarding sanctions on persons doing business in Cuba.

Mergers, Acquisitions, and Divestitures

Represent multinational companies and foreign investors before CFIUS in connection with acquisitions of U.S. businesses.
Advise foreign investors on the applicability of the Foreign Investment Risk Review Modernization Act (FIRRMA) Pilot Program and filing strategies.
Assist companies with export controls, sanctions, and anti-money laundering issues and risk assessment in connection with due diligence.
Obtain government approvals in connection with mergers and acquisitions, including notifications to DDTC, national security clearance approvals and negotiating Foreign Ownership, Control, or Influence (FOCI) mitigation instruments with the Defense Security Service.
Provide advice in connection with mergers, acquisitions, and divestitures of companies that have operations in sanctioned countries.
Draft representations, warranties and other contractual provisions regarding compliance responsibility in connection with corporate acquisitions.

Anti-Money Laundering/ Countering the Financing of Terrorism

Advise financial services firms on obligations created by the Bank Secrecy Act and USA Patriot Act Amendments, including Know Your Customer (KYC) requirements and other related due diligence and reporting obligations.
Represent covered financial institutions in connection with FinCEN inquires, including 314(a) requests, and enforcement actions.
Advise in connection with the filing of Suspicious Activity Reports (SAR’s).

Anti-boycott Regulations

Advise major international firms on the anti-boycott implications of contemplated business activity.
Represent companies in compliance and enforcement matters in both Commerce and Treasury Department anti-boycott control regimes, including identifying boycott issues, taking corrective action, making reports and disclosures, and negotiating settlements.

Miscellaneous

Advise U.S. and foreign companies on export control issues arising in proposed contracting with the United States government.
Provide strategic advice and advocacy on legislative and regulatory export controls initiatives.
Advise companies on the multilateral regimes in the export controls field, and assist in developing and implementing strategies for change.
Work with companies performing classified contracts with the United States government to incorporate classified information handling requirements into export compliance programs.

Michael H. Huneke

Co-Chair

Sean M. Reilly

Co-Chair