Steptoe & Johnson LLP

In more than 100 years of practice, Steptoe has earned an international reputation for vigorous representation of clients before governmental agencies, successful advocacy in litigation and arbitration, and creative and practical advice in structuring business transactions. Steptoe has more than 500 lawyers and other professional staff across offices in Beijing, Brussels, Chicago, London, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, and Washington. For more information, visit www.steptoe.com.

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Cyberblog

Episode 322: Bill Barr Crosses the Rubicon

By Stewart Baker

June 29, 2020

For the first time in twenty years, the Justice Department is finally free to campaign for the encryption access bill it has always wanted. Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), and Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) introduced the Lawful Access To Encrypted Data Act. (Ars Technica, Press Release) As Nick Weaver points out in the news roundup, this bill is not a compromise. It’s exactly what DOJ wants – a mandate…

SDNY Blog

Chief Judge McMahon Upholds New York’s COVID-19 Eviction Suspension

By Charles Michael

June 29, 2020

In an opinion today, Chief Judge McMahon upheld a New York executive order that allowed tenants to apply their security deposits towards rent and that temporarily suspended evictions. She ruled that the executive order did not violate the U.S. Constitution’s Takings Clause because landlords necessarily have entered into a heavily regulated area of the economy, and because the executive order was consistent with the type of ordinary ebb and flow of that regulation — as…

International Compliance Blog

Client Alert: Presidential Proclamation Suspends Select Non-Immigrant Entry

By Liz LaRocca & Dana Delott

June 29, 2020

As anticipated, President Trump issued a proclamation on June 22, suspending the ability of foreign nationals in common employment-based non-immigrant (temporary) categories to enter the United States. The proclamation, which is valid until December 31, 2020, places a suspension on the L-1, H-1B, H-2B, and specified J-1 categories. While the proclamation is significant, there are limits to its scope as well as exceptions that can be requested based upon the nature of the work that…

Investigations and Enforcement Blog

Ramped-Up Powers, Performance Anxiety and Political Pressure: A Perfect Storm for UK Law Enforcement Agencies?

By Zoe Osborne & Peter Ibrahim

June 29, 2020

Amongst those who operate or act (whether voluntarily or not) within global law enforcement arenas, there has long been a tendency in some quarters to view the UK law enforcement landscape with less trepidation than that in the US.[1] For many years law enforcement agencies in the United States and particularly the US Department of Justice (DOJ) and Securities and Exchange Commission – exponentially better funded and resourced – have drawn the limelight with…

International Compliance Blog

Treasury, State Departments Sanction Syrian Government and Supporters

By Wan Yi Ho, Nicholas Turner, Meredith Rathbone & Nicholas Kimbrell

June 29, 2020

On June 17, 2020, the US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and the US Department of State announced the addition of 17 individuals and 22 entities to the List of Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons (SDN List), pursuant to the Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act of 2019 (Caesar Act) and Executive Order 13894 (EO 13894), for their support of the Bashar al-Assad government in Syria, and actions to undermine…

International Compliance Blog

US Department of Defense Publishes List of “Communist Chinese Military Companies” Operating Directly or Indirectly in United States Pursuant to Section 1237 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1999 (the “Act”)

By Wendy Wysong, Meredith Rathbone, Paul Hurst, Brian Egan, Ali Burney, Alexandra Baj, Nicholas Turner, Hena Schommer & Peter Jeydel

June 26, 2020

On June 24, 2020, the US Department of Defense (“DoD”) sent a letter to Senator Tom Cotton enclosing a list of twenty companies headquartered in the People’s Republic of China (“PRC”) which DoD determined are operating directly or indirectly in the United States and are “Communist Chinese military companies.” Titled “Qualifying Entities Prepared in Response to Section 1237 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1999 (PUBLIC LAW 105-261),” the “DoD List”…

Investigations and Enforcement Blog

US Export Controls and Economic Sanctions Investigations: The Perils of Parallel Proceedings (Part 1 of 5)

By Wendy Wysong, Ali Burney & Hena Schommer

June 26, 2020

Facing an enforcement action arising from potential violations of US export controls and economic sanctions may mean a battle on two, if not three or four, fronts. Multiple agencies within the US government are responsible for oversight and enforcement of laws and regulations, with overlapping jurisdiction, but distinct requirements, potential penalties, and consequences for non-compliance. These agencies also have different authority, priorities, and powers. Accordingly, a company should anticipate the real possibility that an investigation…

International Compliance Blog

The European Commission releases a White Paper on foreign subsidies in the Single Market

By James Searles, Yongqing Bao, Stefan Tsakanakis & Eléonore Colin

June 26, 2020

On 17 June, the European Commission released its White Paper “on levelling the playing field as regards foreign subsidies.” The White Paper is built on the conclusion that foreign subsidies can undermine competition and distort the EU internal market. It aims at introduction of new EU legislation to address the regulatory “gap” between the EU state aid rules applying to subsidies granted by the EU Member States to EU entities and the current lack of…

Investigations and Enforcement Blog

The FIFA Bribery Case: US Jurisdiction Over Predominantly Foreign Conduct?

By Ashwin Ram, Brittany Prelogar, Elizabeth Arkell & Jefferson Klocke

June 25, 2020

The Second Circuit’s latest opinion in the FIFA bribery investigation – United States v. Napout (United States v. Napout, Nos. 18-2750 (L), 18-2820 (Con), __ F.3d__, 2020 WL 3406620 (2d Cir. June 22, 2020)) – wades into the murky waters of the extraterritorial reach of US fraud statutes and the inherent ambiguity continuing to plague the so-called right to “honest services.” The US government’s expansive interpretation of its jurisdiction under various fraud statutes in cases…

Investigations and Enforcement Blog

Kokesh’s Open Question Resolved: SCOTUS Upholds but Limits Equitable Disgorgement in SEC Civil Actions

By Lucinda Low, Chris Conte, Brittany Prelogar, Patrick Linehan & Jessica Piquet Megaw

June 23, 2020

On June 22, the US Supreme Court weighed in on a question it explicitly left open in Kokesh v. SEC – whether, and to what extent, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in a civil enforcement action may seek “disgorgement” as “equitable relief that may be appropriate or necessary for the benefit of investors” under §78u(d)(5). In an 8-1 decision, the Court in Liu v. SEC concluded that a disgorgement order can indeed qualify as…

Steptoe & Johnson LLP

Episode 322: Bill Barr Crosses the Rubicon

Chief Judge McMahon Upholds New York’s COVID-19 Eviction Suspension

Client Alert: Presidential Proclamation Suspends Select Non-Immigrant Entry

Ramped-Up Powers, Performance Anxiety and Political Pressure: A Perfect Storm for UK Law Enforcement Agencies?

Treasury, State Departments Sanction Syrian Government and Supporters

US Department of Defense Publishes List of “Communist Chinese Military Companies” Operating Directly or Indirectly in United States Pursuant to Section 1237 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1999 (the “Act”)

US Export Controls and Economic Sanctions Investigations: The Perils of Parallel Proceedings (Part 1 of 5)

The European Commission releases a White Paper on foreign subsidies in the Single Market

The FIFA Bribery Case: US Jurisdiction Over Predominantly Foreign Conduct?

Kokesh’s Open Question Resolved: SCOTUS Upholds but Limits Equitable Disgorgement in SEC Civil Actions

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