Trade Compliance and Sanctions
Our Trade Compliance & Sanctions Team provides assistance to businesses in all sectors, helping them identify and manage sanctions risks, implement sanctions compliance programs and liaise with relevant authorities.
We offer a multijurisdictional advisory service to assess a company's collective sanctions risks from the perspective of US, UK, UN, EU and Norwegian sanctions. We understand that the legal framework on sanctions and export controls is highly complex and rapidly changing. Many different sanctions regimes and several potentially relevant sanctions authorities must be considered by businesses with international operations. Non-compliance with relevant sanctions and export control regimes can have serious consequences.
Our team provides a combination of broad sector and legal expertise, as well as practical experience from roles as in-house counsel and with public authorities, to provide practical advice on how to identify and mitigate sanctions risks.
Our lawyers have practical and comprehensive experience that position us to help our clients navigate the most challenging issues within trade compliance. We provide advice to companies of all sizes, in a number of jurisdictions and across a range of sectors, supporting them in the identification and management of risks relating to trade compliance and sanctions.
Expertise
Our services includes:
- Providing comprehensive advice on all matters relating to sanctions and trade compliance
- Multijurisdictional advice – a one-stop-shop for assessing sanctions risks covering US, UK, EU, UN and Norwegian sanctions
- Shipping and sanctions specialists with experience of identifying and handling sanctions risks specific to the shipping sector
- Tailormade services for monitoring new developments and updating on relevant sanctions developments
- Advising on sanctions risk exposure and risk mitigating measures
- Enhanced sanctions screening of counterparties
- Conducting company-wide sanctions risk assessments to identify risks and key controls
- Designing and tailoring sanctions compliance programs
- Performing gap-analyses of existing sanctions compliance programs against best practises
- Providing training on sanctions and export control legislation
- Assisting with license applications and requests for guidance from sanctions authorities
- Investigating potential violations of sanctions
- Liaising with relevant sanctions authorities in connection with potential enforcement cases
- Drafting sanction clauses and providing contractual mitigation
- Handling sanctions-related disputes
- Conducting and responding to due diligence or sanctions risk assessments in M&A activities
- Providing assistance in civil or criminal proceedings relating to (actual or potential) sanctions violations
Sanctions Alerts
We also issue WR Sanctions Alerts, in which we provide updates on material developments in sanctions regimes implemented by the US, UK, UN, EU and Norway.
See our other Compliance areas
Read our articles on Trade Compliance and Sanctions
Russia sanctions: further US and UK designations, expansion of US authorities, UK announces ban on Russian-origin diamonds, copper, aluminium and nickel
On 19 May 2023, coinciding with the first day of the G7 Summit in Hiroshima, both the US and the UK announced several new sanctions designations. In addition, the US has expanded sanctions authorities targeting certain sectors of the Russian economy and banned export of architecture and engineering services to Russia, and the UK has announced coming bans on Russian diamonds, copper, aluminium and nickel.
EU adopts Moldova sanctions framework, US expands Sudan sanctions regime
In recent weeks, the EU has established a new sanctions framework in response to the situation in Moldova, and the US has expanded the scope of its Sudan sanctions regime.
Recent developments in UK sanctions on Russia
In recent weeks, the UK has expanded on its existing trade restrictions on Russia, added further designations to the consolidated sanctions list, published and updated various sanctions related guidance documents, imposed trust services bans in respect of all persons already subject to asset freeze measures and published its Economic Crime Plan for 2023-2026.
