On January 17, 2025, the Supreme Court issued its decision in TikTok Inc. v. Garland, affirming the constitutionality of the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act (the Act), which restricts...more
2/6/2025
/ China ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Data Collection ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Protection ,
First Amendment ,
National Security ,
Personal Data ,
Privacy Laws ,
SCOTUS ,
Social Media ,
TikTok
1. What? Tariff Rates and Legal Authority -
President Trump signed three executive orders imposing new tariffs against Canada, Mexico, and China, following through on prior campaign and post-inauguration promises. While...more
2/4/2025
/ Canada ,
China ,
Compliance ,
Executive Orders ,
International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) ,
International Trade ,
Mexico ,
National Security ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Section 301 ,
Supply Chain ,
Tariffs
With the goal of bolstering domestic U.S. manufacturers and supply chains, the Federal Government has announced revisions to the “Buy American” program that will pressure U.S. agencies and companies to work with domestic...more
11/13/2024
/ Buy American Act ,
Department of Defense (DOD) ,
Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) ,
Foreign Trade Regulations ,
General Services Administration (GSA) ,
Infrastructure ,
Manufacturers ,
NASA ,
Procurement Guidelines ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Supply Chain ,
Waivers
The U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) has published a Final Rule to implement the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) program, which establishes minimum cybersecurity requirements for nearly all DOD contracts....more
10/23/2024
/ Compliance ,
Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) ,
Cyber Threats ,
Cybersecurity ,
Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) ,
Department of Defense (DOD) ,
DFARS ,
Federal Contractors ,
Final Rules ,
Sensitive Personal Information ,
Subcontractors
Against the backdrop of increasing international competition in the artificial intelligence (AI) space, the Enhancing National Frameworks for Overseas Critical Exports Act (the ENFORCE Act) was recently introduced in the U.S....more
6/26/2024
/ Artificial Intelligence ,
Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
China ,
Department of Defense (DOD) ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Export Control Reform Act (ECRA) ,
Export Controls ,
Machine Learning ,
National Security ,
Semiconductors ,
US State Departments
As the impact of artificial intelligence on various sectors of the U.S. economy grew in 2023, so did the involvement of regulators and policymakers. One of the most recent — and substantive — regulatory standards is the...more
In October 2020, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (“CMS”) finalized the Transparency in Coverage Rule (“the Rule”), requiring most health insurance plans and issuers offering individual or group coverage to...more
A major issue faced by government contractors (at any tier) is the risk of organizational conflicts of interest (“OCIs”). To reform the OCI regulatory framework, Congress recently passed the Preventing Organizational...more
As the Russia-Ukraine conflict escalates, the U.S. Government has started to implement new sanctions on Russian entities on top of the ones that already existed. On February 21, 2022, the Executive Order on Blocking Property...more
2/25/2022
/ Biden Administration ,
Executive Orders ,
Exports ,
Foreign Policy ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Oil & Gas ,
Russia ,
Sanctions ,
SDN List ,
Supply Chain ,
Ukraine
On June 3, 2021, President Biden signed an executive order to “solidify and strengthen” a Trump-era executive order prohibiting investment in certain companies with ties to the Chinese military. The purpose of the order is to...more
Traditionally, United States software developers have struggled to compete globally due to strict export control and international trade laws. But since export control reform that began during President Obama’s...more
A common tactic by competitors is to seek adversaries’ (or even supply-chain partners’) data that is maintained by the United States, an individual state, or even municipal governmental agencies. These efforts are meant to...more
3/16/2021
/ Attorney-Client Privilege ,
Data Collection ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
FOIA ,
National Marine Fisheries Service ,
Privileged Communication ,
Privileged Documents ,
Public Records ,
SCOTUS ,
Sierra Club ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service v Sierra Club
Many investors, traditional and progressive, are looking hard at cryptocurrency investments as a way to diversify their portfolios. However, there are still multiple known “unknowns” about this new market, including the...more
2/24/2021
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Bitcoin ,
Cross-Border Transactions ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Export Controls ,
FinCEN ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Investment ,
Investment Adviser ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Popular ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
U.S. Treasury ,
Virtual Currency
In an increasingly connected global economy, foreign countries or companies may find themselves seeking foreign-country money judgments in unexpected places, such as Arizona. To address this situation, the Arizona Legislature...more
On October 1, 2020, the U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) issued an advisory regarding the potential sanctions risk for entities that facilitate ransomware payments. OFAC defined “ransomware” as:
A form...more
11/19/2020
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Cybersecurity ,
Department of Defense (DOD) ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) ,
New Guidance ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Personal Information ,
Popular ,
Ransomware ,
State Attorneys General ,
Trading with the Enemy Act
On November 12, 2020, President Donald Trump signed an executive order prohibiting “United States persons” from engaging in “transactions” in securities of “Chinese Communist military companies.” The order marks another...more
The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (“FinCEN”) and the Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) have recently stepped up the pressure on virtual currency companies. Increased regulatory scrutiny has largely taken the...more
On March 27, 2020, President Trump signed into law the largest spending bill in U.S. history in an effort to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. One focus of the bill is on ensuring that sufficient amounts of critical materials are...more
The Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM) has announced the temporary expansion or establishment of four financing programs to help exporters cope with the COVID-19 crisis. The crisis has caused a multitude of...more
On February 26, a federal district court in Connecticut acquitted the defendant in United States v. Hoskins on all counts related to the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (“FCPA”). A jury had previously found the defendant guilty...more
3/3/2020
/ Acquittals ,
Agency Relationship ,
Alstom ,
Bribery ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Foreign Nationals ,
Indictments ,
Money Laundering ,
Post Trial Motions
As 2020 begins, U.S. tariff policy toward China and the European Union (EU) is moving in different directions, with significant implications for U.S. companies. Beginning with China, the U.S. has gradually implemented tariffs...more
In a statement issued on December 1, 2018, the White House announced that it reached a deal with China to postpone the scheduled increase of List Three tariffs on Chinese imports for 90 days. The announcement came after a...more
As the United States begins imposing new import tariffs, some Arizona manufacturers are exploring foreign trade zones as a manufacturing option to avoid these costs. But what exactly are foreign trade zones, and how can U.S....more