Practice Areas

International Trade: Economic Sanctions, Export Controls and National Security

Paul Hastings helps clients address critical issues in the international trade space, including economic sanctions, export controls and other national security matters. Our guidance enables clients to grow their international presence while proactively mitigating risk of investigation and enforcement.

Our experienced team is composed of top-rated lawyers based in North America, Europe and Asia working across a wide spectrum of industries to advise clients on investigations and enforcement defense, compliance program design and implementation, mergers and acquisitions, and additional compliance matters.

“The team at Paul Hastings provides very strong advice on complex matters.”

Chambers USA International Trade: Export Controls & Economic Sanctions

What Sets Us Apart

Preeminent Practice. Our team is recognized as having a renowned practice, backed by client referrals and an array of industry and legal awards, including Band 1 rankings in Chambers Global for International Trade: Export Controls & Economic Sanctions, recognition in Global Investigation Review’s GIR Top 100 and individual recognitions as leading lawyers in export controls, economic sanctions and the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) matters. Senior members of the team are also members of our Chambers-ranked Band 1 investigations and enforcement practice.
Global Government Relations. Our practitioners maintain strong relationships with leaders of all relevant government agencies, including in the United States — the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), Department of Justice (DOJ), Department of State, Department of the Treasury and Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) — as well as in the U.K. — Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI), Office of Trade Sanctions Implementation (OTSI), the FCA and Prudential Regulatory Authority — and relevant European bodies, to name a few.
International Coverage and Comprehensive Experience. With a strong core presence in Washington, D.C., London and other vital areas for our clients, our team seamlessly integrates the firm's global network of 24 offices. Where direct presence or in-house expertise is not established, we cultivate close partnerships with the most accomplished practitioners in those markets, guaranteeing consistent world-class service for our clients worldwide.

Economic Sanctions

In today’s increasingly complex geopolitical environment, companies face rapidly evolving economic sanctions compliance, investigation and enforcement risks. Our team guides clients through the rapidly changing sanctions environment by advising on — and helping mitigate — these risks in all major trading regions around the world, including the U.S., the U.K., across the EU, and China and Asia.

We routinely defend export controls and sanctions matters before key U.S. regulatory and enforcement agencies, including the BIS, the Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC), DOJ, OFAC, OFSI and similar authorities around the world.

These representations include working with clients to obtain authorization from such agencies to engage in cross-border transactions; developing tailored, risk-based approaches to compliance best practices; and addressing unmitigated risk.

Representative Experience:

Assisted a major international software company in compliance with a DOJ non-prosecution agreement, including any related violations of sanctions or export control laws.
Represented a UAE financial institution in alleged criminal and civil sanctions matters before the DOJ, OFAC, the U.S. Federal Reserve, the New York Department of Financial Services, the U.K. Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the U.K. Prudential Regulation Authority. Most notably, we successfully defended our client against a $750 million OFAC fine with novel legal and policy arguments, based largely on statute of limitations grounds, which resulted in a Finding of Violation with zero financial penalty.
Represented a syndicate of Nordic and Western European banks in connection with U.S. and EU sanctions on a related syndicate borrower, and in connection with the borrower’s attempts to purchase Venezuelan crude oil pursuant to license in connection with current U.S. sanctions regime.
On behalf of a major Central Asia-based mining company, we secured “comfort letters” from OFAC and the U.S. Department of State, as well as declinations of jurisdiction from OFSI, in connection with retirement of credit facilities with major sanctioned Russian banks, enabling clients to repay the equivalent of $1 billion to sanctioned Russian banks, while, for the first time, accessing Western finance from the global banking system.
Represented and advised a NYSE-traded oilfield service provider in connection with all U.S., U.K. and EU sanctions and export controls matters (and Foreign Corrupt Practices Act/anti-corruption matters), including Venezuela-related matters.
Advised a Japanese conglomerate in connection with its continued efforts to secure U.S. government confirmation and approval of legal and compliance positions, allowing it to continue doing business with its joint venture in Venezuela with the Venezuelan government.
Advised a major UAE-based oil and gas refiner and trader in connection with blocked payments relating to an ongoing OFAC and DOJ investigation into Iranian oil trading.
Counsel a U.S. payment software company regarding ongoing sanctions compliance considerations for its evolving business and assist in making voluntary self-disclosures and representing the company before OFAC.
Represent a global brokerage firm in providing sanctions advice responding to novel questions of interpretation of sanctions regulations and representing the company before a variety of U.S. regulators, including OFAC.

Export Controls and National Security

Further combining the compliance and enforcement aspects of our wider practice, we also advise on all aspects of the export controls field, whether under the U.S. Export Controls Regulations (EAR) and International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), before the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), before the relevant U.K. and EU agencies, and in matters addressing cross-border investment restrictions, such as CFIUS, the DOJ’s Team Telecom and Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency's (DCSA) Foreign Ownership, Control or Influence (FOCI) mitigation process.

As export controls evolve in matters of artificial intelligence, our team continues to provide relevant guidance in connection to the procurement of advanced computing items (e.g., GPUs) and the development of frontier models, in addition to regularly corresponding with various government agencies with regulatory authority over export controls matters. We also guide clients through the CFIUS process (as well as analogous FDI processes in other jurisdictions), advising at every stage of the transaction life cycle, and, where such transactions involve companies with classified business, we advise on DCSA’s FOCI-mitigation process.

We often are tapped to advise clients in high-profile sectors, such as semiconductors and defense contracting, and members of our team offer a wealth of experience in tariff matters arising under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962 and the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA).

Representative Experience:

Advised a leading UAE technology company on sanctions and export controls compliance, including implementation of measures to address changes in U.S. export controls around artificial intelligence and advanced computing resources.
Counseled some of the world’s largest microchip design and manufacturing companies, as well as their customers, on compliance with U.S. and foreign government restrictions on the export of encryption technology.
Advised a U.S. software as a service company providing remote work tools on encryption-related classification matters and worked with BIS to provide such classification.
Regularly advised a major non-U.S. defense company specializing in missile and aviation systems on ITAR and EAR matters, including counseling, licensing and representation in voluntary disclosure and related agency proceedings.
Assisted a Chinese technology company as their principal outside export controls counsel to extend its geographic reach and strengthen its export controls and sanctions compliance programs.
Advised a Japanese construction company on export controls and trade remedies matters impacting their global distribution network.
Advised an international electronics company on the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Validated End-User licensing program.
Represented a U.S. systems integrator, specializing in avionics cyber warfare, command and control systems, and intelligence surveillance reconnaissance (ISR) sensors and platforms, in developing a comprehensive approach toward compliance that simultaneously met the business’ strategic objectives while preparing ITAR Technical Assistance Agreements, export licenses and voluntary disclosures.