A few weeks ago, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) issued a stark warning to companies and individuals worldwide. Export and sanctions enforcement efforts are on the rise. Especially for anyone who engages with China, Russia, North Korea or Iran. During a keynote address on October 5 in New York, associate deputy attorney general John…
James Bond makes it look so easy. Zooming around in sports cars with an array of techno-gadgets at his fingertips, he outwits his adversaries and saves the world. He does all of this while wearing tailor-made suits and sipping martinis. After defeating every foe, he jets off to a villa in the French Riviera, where…
Deemed exports can present a challenging compliance environment for companies as they straddle export control regulations as well as employment and anti-discrimination law. To understand the risks associated with deemed exports for an organization, it is recommended that the company understands the extent of their export-controlled items. A deemed export is the release to a…
Unlicensed Exports Apply To All Foreign National Students It’s been several years since the imprisonment of John Reece Roth, a former University of Tennessee electrical engineering professor who was convicted of conspiracy, wire fraud and fifteen (15) violations of exporting ITAR controlled defense articles. Professor Roth was involved in a U.S. Air Force contract for…
Last week, the U.S. Department of Justice announced that a former Raytheon engineer was sentenced to 38 months in prison for violations of the Arms Export Control Act (AECA). According to the press release, Wei Sun, 49, pleaded guilty to one felony count of violating the AECA. He was sentenced by District Court Judge Rosemary…
In a press release earlier this month, the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) announced a tightening of controls against Chinese tech firm Huawei Technologies. BIS also added an additional 38 Huawei affiliates to the Entity List – an action that will impose a license requirement for all items subject to the Export Administration Regulations (EAR)…
“Hey Alexa, are you a U.S. Person?” Imagine this. A conference call with your foreign-based customer is about to begin. Today’s agenda includes technical discussions of recent upgrades and changes to the designs of some ITAR-controlled items. Your Trade Compliance Officer has reviewed the material and confirmed that export authorizations are in place approving the…
Last week, FLIR Systems, Inc. entered into a Consent Agreement with Department of State, Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (“DDTC”) to settle allegations of violations of the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (“ITAR”). There were 347 alleged violations cited in the Proposed Charging Letter. These violations included 219 counts of unauthorized exports to Foreign-Person employees;…
Earlier this month, DDTC published a new Consent Agreement with Bright Lights USA, Inc. of Barrington, New Jersey. This agreement alleges a variety of different ITAR violations, including technical data exports and failure to keep adequate records. Are these problems sufficiently addressed in your company’s export compliance program? As always, it’s important to take note,…
Here’s one for all the Human Resources professionals out there. The U.S. Department of Justice Office of Special Counsel for Immigration-Related Unfair Employment Practices (the “OSC”) has issued a response to a request for guidance regarding complying with antidiscrimination laws (specifically under the Immigration and Nationality Act, or “INA”) when verifying employees’ citizenship status under…