By: Scott Maberry

The U.S. Government has taken yet another step to counter the threat of Iran-sponsored terrorism, this time focusing on Iran’s direct activities in the Western Hemisphere. On December 28, 2012, President Barack Obama signed into law the “Countering Iran in the Western Hemisphere Act of 2012,” H.R. 3783 (112th Congress 2012). The Act requires the U.S. Department of State to develop a strategy to address Iran’s “growing hostile presence and activity in the Western Hemisphere.” The Act lists several concerns about Iran’s presence in the Americas and the Caribbean, including economic and diplomatic initiatives, economic activity, and allegations that Iran is supporting Hezbollah activities in the border areas of Brazil, Argentina, and Paraguay.
Continue Reading New Law To Assess Iranian Activities in the Americas

On February 6, 2013, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) published two guidance documents related to the Iranian sanctions regulations and licenses.  The first is Guidance on Humanitarian Assistance and Related Exports to the Iranian People.  While the guidance is simply an overview of previously-issued exceptions, the publication is nonetheless an indication of Washington’s efforts to encourage those projects and transactions that benefit the Iranian people directly.


Continue Reading ALERT: Clarifications of the Iranian Sanctions Regulations

By: Thad McBride and Cheryl Palmeri

The start of the new year is the perfect time to reflect on the international trade enforcement actions of the past year and to predict what they might mean for the year ahead.  This exercise is made exponentially easier by the “Summary of Major U.S. Export Enforcement, Economic Espionage, Trade Secret, and Embargo-Related Criminal Cases” (the “Enforcement Summary”) which recently was updated through December 6, 2012.  The Enforcement Summary suggests a number of important trends in export enforcement and embargo-related cases.

Continue Reading Iran, China, and Prison: A Recap of 2012’s Major Export Enforcement and Embargo-Related Criminal Cases

By: Scott Maberry, Thad McBride, and Cheryl Palmeri

Much has been said about what is missing from the new FCPA Resource Guide (the Guide) published by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), linked here.  Here, we consider instead the areas in which – true to its name – the Guide offers some helpful guidance.  Specifically, based on our experience of representing companies and individuals before the DOJ and SEC, this article describes four areas in which the Guide taught us something new or called into question what we thought we knew about the FCPA.

Continue Reading What’s In the New FCPA Resource Guide: Some Welcome Clarity and Unexpected Muddling

By: Mark Jensen

Notwithstanding our overall approval of the FCPA Resource Guide (the Guide) issued by the Department of Justice (DOJ) and Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) earlier this month, we are certainly not above a bit of criticism.

To that end, those who have investigated and settled FCPA cases after choosing to cooperate with the government will be familiar with the instruction to do “homework” following a meeting.  The direction generally requires a deeper dive into specific facts or issues identified by the DOJ and/or SEC.  While directed by the government, the homework instruction nonetheless allows the investigation target a lot of leeway about how to get the homework done.

The same approach infuses the Guide.
Continue Reading What’s Not in the New FCPA Resource Guide, or Why Doing Your FCPA Homework is Still a Good Idea

By: Thad McBride and Cheryl Palmeri

While the FCPA world – and this blog – has been abuzz thanks to the new FCPA Guide, on a relatively mundane note, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) also recently issued two Opinion Procedure Releases (OPRs) with respect to whether the DOJ would take enforcement action against particular conduct.  The OPRs, the only two the DOJ has released thus far this year, contemplated two distinct issues under the FCPA: (i) the definition of “foreign official,”[1] and (ii) the application of the “reasonable and bona fide expenditure[s]” affirmative defense.[2]  Although both OPRs concluded by saying the DOJ would not take enforcement action under the facts presented, each OPR is only as good as those precise facts; in other words, U.S. companies may find it difficult to apply these releases to their own compliance issues.
Continue Reading Smaller FCPA Story But We’re Sure You’re Following It: DOJ Issues New Opinion Procedure Releases

By: Scott Maberry and Matthew Riemer

As we reported last month, the Obama administration continues to display a commitment to increasingly tough sanctions against Iran and its trading partners. Over the past few weeks, the U.S. Department of the Treasury, Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) has published new regulations implementing certain sections of the Iran Threat Reduction and Syria Human Rights Act of 2012 (“ITRA”) and various Executive Orders.
Continue Reading Iranian Transactions and Sanctions Regulations Impose New Restrictions on U.S. Business in Iran

By: Mark Jensen

As many exporters know, the U.S. government conducts investigations under the so-called “Blue Lantern” program to monitor end-use compliance in defense trade exports. On October 23, 2012, the U.S. Department of State, Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (“DDTC”) updated its Fiscal Year 2009 Blue Lantern report (titled “End-Use Monitoring report for Defense Articles and Defense Services”), describing actions it took to implement the “Blue Lantern” end-use monitoring program in 2009.  While the data contained in the 2009 report are somewhat dated, the fiscal year 2010 and 2011 reports are also available. Together, the reports provide important reminders about monitoring compliance under the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (“ITAR”) for any company dealing with military related exports.
Continue Reading ITAR End-Use Investigations Reveal Compliance Priorities

By: Thad McBride

As addressed in our September 27 blog, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) was sued in U.S. District Court by Ralls Corp relating to the acquisition by Ralls of four Oregon companies whose assets consisted solely of windfarm development rights and to CFIUS’s determination to block the transaction.

On September 28, President Barack Obama did just that.



Continue Reading CFIUS Update: President Blocks Ralls Transaction

By: Thad McBride and Cheryl Palmeri

As we have reported in recent months, the United States consistently has been taking steps to expand diplomatic and commercial relations with Myanmar.  And in recent weeks, that effort has continued.

To begin with, on September 26, 2012, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told Myanmar President Thein Sein that the United States intends to ease its ban on imports from Myanmar.  The import ban is the most significant remaining restriction on U.S. trade with Myanmar.  Lifting it is unlikely to unleash a flood of imports into the United States from Myanmar, but it will nonetheless be an important step to demonstrate that the United States really is ready to establish normal – or close to normal – trading relations with Myanmar.
Continue Reading Update on U.S.-Myanmar Relations: The Thaw Continues