Our experienced team advises individuals, start-ups, joint ventures and corporates of various nationalities on compliance with British, American and European export controls and sanctions laws. We assess the impact of sanctions on our clients’ business activities and, when necessary, we draft and submit licence applications on behalf of clients to obtain authorisation for prohibited activities. We also represent clients who have made the decision to proactively self-report a sanctions violation or who have been accused of trade control breaches by the UK’s Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI), the US Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC)  the UK Export Control Joint Unit (ECJU) or European national competent authorities (NCAs). Our team has particular expertise in situations where there is a risk of criminal charges or where a criminal investigation has already started.

Our sanctions team offers clients an international perspective on the legal impact and practical consequences of these sanctions on their operations around the world.

Our team also conducts comprehensive sanctions screening and due diligence using international sanctions and compliance databases. Our searches may cover individuals, corporate entities, shareholders, beneficial owners, directors and other relevant counterparties, depending on the scope of the engagement. We analyse the results in light of the applicable sanctions regimes and prepare tailored reports setting out identified sanctions exposure, potential compliance risks and our legal assessment and recommendations.