Martin brings over a decade of prominent government and private sector experience in economic sanctions, export controls, and other national security matters; she is the fifth former OFAC official to join the firm
(December 11, 2023) – Morrison Foerster, a leading global law firm, is pleased to announce the arrival of Elyse Martin as of counsel in the firm’s National Security Group. Martin, who will be based in the firm’s Austin, Texas office, brings to the firm more than a decade of combined government and private practice experience in economic sanctions, export controls, and other foreign policy and national security trade and investment controls matters. Prior to her most recent private sector role, Martin served for more than five years at the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), most recently as OFAC’s Assistant Director for Regulatory Affairs.
Martin joins Morrison Foerster from another leading global firm, where she managed a substantial portfolio of complex sanctions matters, including preparing specific license applications and general license requests; advocating for clients before the U.S. Departments of the Treasury and State; counseling clients across a variety of sectors regarding ordinary course sanctions issues and the establishment or updating of risk-based sanctions compliance policies; providing critical sanctions support on major client divestments of Russian entities and businesses, as well as other corporate transactions; conducting internal investigations; preparing voluntary self-disclosures; and handling sensitive client enforcement matters.
During her tenure at OFAC, Martin directed the team responsible for OFAC’s regulatory actions across all sanctions programs. Prior to serving as Assistant Director at OFAC, Martin served as a Section Chief in OFAC’s Compliance Division and as a Sanctions Regulations Advisor in its Regulatory Affairs Division. Over the span of her career at OFAC, she was extensively involved in the development, implementation, and administration of OFAC’s sanctions programs, and played a critical role in the execution of many of OFAC’s most complex and highest profile sanctions actions, including those involving Iran, Venezuela, Russia, and Cuba. Among other responsibilities, Martin directed the team responsible for drafting, clearing, and publishing all of OFAC’s regulatory actions. She also worked closely on sanctions issues with interagency partners, including the National Security Council, the Department of State, and the Department of Commerce. Martin also provided significant input on enforcement, compliance, and licensing matters presenting unique and complex questions of interpretation and policy.
“Elyse’s extensive OFAC experience, including her broad command of the legal issues and regulations related to economic sanctions, as well as her export controls expertise, combined with her years of private practice experience, will be invaluable to our global clients seeking guidance on their most complex national security and foreign policy issues,” said John Smith, former OFAC Director and co-head of Morrison Foerster’s National Security practice. “Elyse’s arrival makes her the fifth OFAC official to join MoFo in recent years, further cementing the firm’s position as a national security industry leader.”
In addition to Smith and Martin, MoFo’s sanctions practice includes three other OFAC veterans: former OFAC Assistant Chief Counsel Andrea Delisi, former OFAC Enforcement Section Chief Rachel Fiorill, and former OFAC Sanctions Compliance Officer Charlotte Baskin-Gerwitz. Together with Smith, the MoFo National Security practice is co-headed by Brandon Van Grack, who oversaw sanctions and export control prosecutions at the U.S. Department of Justice before joining the firm. Nathanael Kurcab, who formerly served in the Intelligence Branch of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, is also a senior member of the firm’s National Security/sanctions team.
“I am thrilled to join Morrison Foerster’s exceptional National Security team and the firm,” said Martin. “Having previously worked with many of the firm’s sanctions experts during my time at OFAC, I know I am joining a talented and dedicated team of lawyers. I look forward to working alongside my colleagues, new and old, and leveraging my extensive technical expertise to assist clients in solving their most complex sanctions issues, while drawing on my OFAC experience to help our clients take risk-based approaches with their multilayered sanctions matters.”
During her tenure at OFAC, Martin received several notable awards and recognitions, including OFAC’s “Outstanding Service” award in 2021 and two Office of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence awards for work on the Iran sanctions program and a significant project to serve OFAC’s national security and foreign policy goals, in addition to being recognized as OFAC’s sole “Outstanding New Employee of the Year” in 2016. Earlier in her career, she was an attorney at another prominent global law firm.
Martin earned her B.A., magna cum laude, from The George Washington University and her J.D. from New York University School of Law. She is admitted to practice in the District of Columbia, New York, and Texas.
