National Security: Economic Sanctions + Export Controls, CFIUS, FARA

Morrison Foerster’s National Security practice, led by John Smith and Brandon Van Grack, provides strategic advice and counseling to clients on a broad range of regulatory, compliance, investigatory, and enforcement matters pertaining to national security. The government’s enforcement and regulatory efforts in this area continue to expand and overlap, and thus navigating the national security landscape increasingly requires expertise across multiple disciplines.

The practice includes over 50 National Security lawyers, including former senior officials from the U.S. Department of the Treasury, Department of Justice (DOJ), Department of Defense (DoD), Department of State, National Security Council, and Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), as well as former federal and state prosecutors from across the country.

Our Practice Leaders

John Smith is the former Director of the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), where he was centrally involved in all aspects of developing, implementing, and enforcing U.S. government economic sanctions requirements and as Director oversaw every OFAC enforcement case against financial institutions and global operating companies. Prior to joining OFAC, he played a leading role in sanctions oversight at DOJ and the United Nations.

Brandon L. Van Grack was a senior national security official at the DOJ, including Chief of the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) Unit. Over the last decade, he worked on the resolution of almost every significant corporate matter pertaining to sanctions and export control and managed the DOJ’s Voluntary Self-Disclosure Program for export control and sanctions violations.

Our Focus Areas

• Sanctions and AML: Representing clients in investigations, enforcement, and regulatory matters, and counseling on compliance with sanctions and trade embargoes under the regulations of OFAC, the European Union, the United Kingdom, the People’s Republic of China, Japan, and other jurisdictions, including questions regarding global risk under primary and secondary sanctions, as well as BSA/AML regulation, compliance and enforcement. Our Sanctions practice may be the only one in the world with four former OFAC officials, including the former Director, and has been recognized by Chambers as a leader in the field.
• Export Control Restrictions: Representing clients in the full range of export control matters from investigations and enforcement actions, to counseling on licensing and registration matters under the Export Administration Regulations administered by the U.S. Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), the Office of Information and Communications Technology and Services (ICTS), and the International Traffic in Arms Regulations administered by the Department of State’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC), and comparable European Union export controls.
• CFIUS and Global Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) Assessments: Evaluating proposed transactions involving the acquisitions of, and investments in, businesses that trigger national security considerations in myriad jurisdictions. This includes considerations around transactions subject to review by CFIUS, as well as transactions that trigger the UK’s National Security and Investment Act and other global FDI regimes. Our FDI team is recognized as an industry leader, holding a practice ranking from Chambers USA in the International Trade: CFIUS Experts category.
• FARA Investigations and Review: Advising clients on the latest FARA enforcement trends and interpretive guidance and conducting sensitive internal investigations and risk-based compliance reviews. We literally wrote the book on FARA Enforcement for the American Bar Association and are the only firm with the former Chief of the FARA Unit.
• Companies Engaged in Classified Activities: Navigating issues that arise when companies are engaged in classified activities under the National Industrial Security Program Operating Manual (NISPOM) administered by the Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency (DCSA).

Each of these regulatory regimes presents unique challenges to business planning and operations of U.S. and non-U.S. entities that must be addressed in connection with diligence, obtaining required approvals, implementing appropriate compliance programs, and engaging with the U.S. government on potential enforcement matters. Our experience enables us to identify practical solutions tailored to the business needs of our clients.