On October 28, 2024, the U.S. Department of Treasury released a pre-publication version of its final rule containing the outbound investment regulations.Continue Reading At Long Last, Final Rule for Outbound Investment Regulations Published
Reid Whitten
Reid is the Managing Partner of Sheppard Mullin's London office, practicing in international trade regulations and investigations.
The Benefits of Friends: Removing Space Export Controls for Allies (Part III of IV)
You know who your friends are. You’ve known them for a long time, you understand one another, and, importantly, you trust each other.Continue Reading The Benefits of Friends: Removing Space Export Controls for Allies (Part III of IV)
The Commercial Industry Gets More Space: Reduced Export Controls Ease Cross-Border Collaborations (Part II of IV)
In a land before time (technologically speaking . . . so, like, the mid-nineties), the most basic software encryption functions were controlled under the U.S. International Traffic in Arms Regulations. The then-current version of Netscape or Lotus Notes (the hot tech of the era) were controlled under the same regulatory regime as missiles and fighter jets. Then, in 1996, an executive order moved encryption to commercial export controls and freed up the software industry to flourish into its current, omnipresent state.Continue Reading The Commercial Industry Gets More Space: Reduced Export Controls Ease Cross-Border Collaborations (Part II of IV)
Space Rules, or . . . Space Rules!: Reduced Export Controls Ease Cross-Border Collaborations (Part I of IV)
We may imagine that a space company begins with only a few screws and some sheet metal in a garage.[1] But regardless of its origins, not long after that early phase, that same company is likely to have a global reach. Commercial space companies inherently involve elements such as international supply chains, foreign customers, and design and engineering talent from around the world.Continue Reading Space Rules, or . . . Space Rules!: Reduced Export Controls Ease Cross-Border Collaborations (Part I of IV)
Banks Do Export, Too: New BIS Guidance Tags Financial Firms with Export Compliance Responsibilities
“Every export—every single one—has a related financial transaction”Continue Reading Banks Do Export, Too: New BIS Guidance Tags Financial Firms with Export Compliance Responsibilities
A (r)AUKUS Discussion in the Space Industry
This week of September 16, Paris will play host to the biggest spectacle of the year (sorry, Olympics), the World Space Business Week. Attendees will come from around the world to discuss advancements in commercial space and global satellite infrastructure. However, it will be the representatives of Australian, UK, and U.S. companies that may have the most to talk about.Continue Reading A (r)AUKUS Discussion in the Space Industry
BIS Summer Update: Essential Reading for Your Next Beach Trip!
As we pass the midpoint of a year marked by assertive enforcement of dual use laws, the Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) published an updated version of its Don’t Let This Happen to You! Guide. That guide, which was last updated in March 2024, includes numerous case examples illustrating BIS’s criminal and administrative enforcement actions. The update also comes with two additional BIS publications addressing measures to reduce diversion risks and a six-year review of BIS’s licensing strategy.Continue Reading BIS Summer Update: Essential Reading for Your Next Beach Trip!
Commerce Updates Boycott Requester List
On June 27, 2024, the U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Industry & Security (BIS) announced its first update to the boycott requester list. The list contains entities that have been reported by a U.S. person as having made a boycott-related request in connection with a transaction in the interstate or foreign commerce of the United States. The latest update adds 57 entities to the list and removes 127 entities. Some notable additions include entities from Japan and Germany.Continue Reading Commerce Updates Boycott Requester List
Proposed Outbound Investment Regulations: Understanding the New Restrictions on U.S. Outbound Investments in Artificial Intelligence (AI), Semiconductors, and Quantum Computing
In an era where technological prowess and economic security are more entangled than ever, the United States has refined its approach towards restricting outbound investments. As we have been blogging since 2022, the past two years have seen efforts to restrict outbound investments for national security reasons. Those efforts come both from Congress through legislation and the White House through Executive Order.Continue Reading Proposed Outbound Investment Regulations: Understanding the New Restrictions on U.S. Outbound Investments in Artificial Intelligence (AI), Semiconductors, and Quantum Computing
OFAC Tightens Russia Sanctions; BIS Cracks Down on Diversion
On June 12, 2024, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced new measures targeting Russia’s financial infrastructure, including:Continue Reading OFAC Tightens Russia Sanctions; BIS Cracks Down on Diversion
Walking the Tightrope: EU’s Sanctions Enforcement Directive Puts Violators on Notice
In a bold move to tighten its sanctions enforcement, the EU rolled out Directive 2024/1226, establishing minimum rules for defining criminal offenses and penalties related to the violation of EU sanctions. Effective May 19, the Directive mandates Member States to incorporate its provisions into their national legislation within 12 months.Continue Reading Walking the Tightrope: EU’s Sanctions Enforcement Directive Puts Violators on Notice