In a recent article in Entrepreneur, Sheppard Mullin partner Jonathan Meyer, a former Senate counsel to Vice President Biden and Deputy General Counsel at the Department of Homeland Security, points out that Congressional oversight of companies is likely to increase in the next two years, and discusses some of the hottest topics it is likely to focus on.  These include healthcare, financial reform and tax avoidance, cybersecurity and product safety, among others.  Companies should keep an eye on Capitol Hill, and be ready for what might come their way.
Continue Reading Congress Likely to Focus its Oversight Spotlight on the Private Sector

Your essential guide to the legal and regulatory challenges facing US organizations entering the Cuban market

Tourism. Aviation. Infrastructure. Hospitality. Agriculture. Food. Retail – Every industry will have its own set of Cuban regulatory hurdles that will need to be overcome in order for U.S. businesses to successfully stake a claim. Momentum’s U.S. – Cuba Corporate Counsel Summit will bring together GC’s from major US corporations charged with the task of navigating through the regulatory landscape. They will be joined by outside counsel from the US and Cuba who have the expertise they need. Drawing lessons from European and Asian companies already operating in Cuba, you will receive a detailed strategic roadmap and essential network which will enable their organizations to chart a path to success.Continue Reading U.S. – Cuba Corporate Counsel Summit

Earlier this month, the U.S. Department of Justice filed a civil forfeiture action seeking to recover certain Louisiana real estate allegedly purchased with funds traceable to a $2 million bribe paid to a former Honduran government official in the Central American country.  The DOJ’s action in United States of America v. Real Property Located at 1404 North Highway 190, No. 2:15-cv-00074 (E.D. La. Jan. 13, 2015), reiterates its commitment to seizing proceeds of foreign official corruption as part of its Kleptocracy Initiative, and underscores the U.S. Government’s potentially expansive jurisdiction over foreign entities based on bribes with little connection to the United States.
Continue Reading Justice Department’s Kleptocracy Forfeiture Action Against Real Estate Allegedly Linked to Honduran Bribery Scheme Underscores U.S. Government’s Expansive Jurisdiction

“So you are the great lawyer I’ve been told about!  But, you are so young!  I was expecting an old lawyer.”

With those words, the silver-haired senior-level executive of the customs broker I was investigating for bribery let me know that his guard was down.  In fact, he seemed relieved and almost eager to help me, a young lawyer that reminded him of his nephew.

This was exactly the reaction I wanted.  We exchanged pleasantries in Spanish over a cup of coffee and proceeded to have a friendly free-flowing conversation.  That conversation revealed that his company was bribing government officials in Latin America, he was a liar, and he had no idea that he had just given me the evidence I needed when I went up the chain to confront his boss.  He never saw it coming.Continue Reading Never Let Them See You Coming—Keys to Setting Up Witnesses Interviews In An Internal Investigation

The U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) has amended the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) to restrict exports to Venezuela of certain items intended for “a military end use or end user.”  These changes complement a pre-existing U.S. arms embargo against Venezuela – in place since 2006 – that was imposed because of Venezuela’s failure to cooperate on counterterrorism initiatives.
Continue Reading Drop Your Weapons: The United States Restricts Military Exports to Venezuela

According to the Los Angeles Times, Mexican officials have estimated the amount of laundered money in the Mexican economy at $50 billion annually—three percent of the legitimate Mexican economy.  The CIA World Fact Book labels Mexico as a “major drug-producing and transit nation”, as well as a “significant money-laundering center”.  Illicit cash flows from cartels have affected nearly every corner of the Mexican economy.
Continue Reading Attacking the Money-Laundering Problem in Mexico

Sheppard Mullin client, Otay Tijuana Venture, announced this week that a cross-border pedestrian bridge linking San Diego with Tijuana’s A.L. Rodríguez International airport will be set to open next year. The project, which began in 2008 when Otay Tijuana Venture purchased the land in Otay Mesa, involved Presidential permits in both countries as well as  unique Public Private Partnerships with U.S. and Mexican customs and immigration authorities.  It is the first project to connect a U.S. facility with a foreign air terminal.
Continue Reading Groundbreaking Cross-border Airport Terminal Linking Tijuana to San Diego Breaks Ground

The Mexican Senate has introduced a constitutional amendment that, if approved, would open the country’s oil market to foreign and private investors.  Currently, oil production is controlled exclusively by the state-owned Petroleos Mexicanos (Pemex).  The amendment, however, would encourage private and foreign investment by allowing companies to partner with Pemex through the use of production and profit-sharing contracts and licenses, among other things.
Continue Reading Mexico To Vote On Historic Amendment To Open Oil Industry To Private Investment