National Security
& CFIUS
The U.S. government increasingly focuses on the national security implications of various transactions and trends in critical industries and technologies. Paul, Weiss offers comprehensive advice on national security investigations, sanctions, export controls, trade, CFIUS and FARA matters, helping clients navigate the spectrum of government risks, compliance challenges, and transactional support. The team is led by one of the nation’s foremost national security lawyers and includes former senior officials with deep experience in handling complex and sensitive national security issues and transactions.
With a team of the industry’s leading regulatory defense and crisis management specialists and former senior officials from the Department of Justice, the White House, Department of State, Department of Homeland Security, and Department of the Treasury, Paul, Weiss is uniquely positioned to help clients respond to national security and international trade-related regulatory inquiries, examinations and subpoenas; conduct internal investigations; and handle matters that develop into multiagency investigations. Our practice also encompasses regulatory advice, compliance counseling and transactional due diligence.
National Security Guidance
U.S. government agencies and law enforcement are increasingly requiring companies to cooperate with national security-related investigations, including surveillance orders and demands for access to sensitive corporate data. We know how to protect our clients, their customers’ data and their most important trade secrets, and have deep experience negotiating with the executive branch or litigating such issues in the courts.
We are also adept at providing real-time guidance in the immediate aftermath of a national security or CFIUS-related adverse event. No firm is better placed to engage multiple U.S. government agencies in parallel matters; advise on strategic communications; respond to Congressional inquiries; and proactively manage longer-term litigation and regulatory fallout.
Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS)
CFIUS is a federal interagency committee with broad authority to review, prohibit or unwind foreign investments in critical U.S. industries. Our market-leading CFIUS practice draws on deep government experience to help clients successfully navigate this complex regulatory landscape.
We advise a range of private and public clients on all CFIUS matters, from assessing CFIUS filing considerations to navigating the CFIUS filing process, and for all industry sectors. Our experience includes some of the largest, most complex transactions CFIUS has reviewed. More specifically, our capabilities include:
- jurisdictional, strategic, and risk counseling;
- deal-structuring and filings;
- non-notified investigations and enforcement actions; and
- mitigation measures, including national security agreements and other mitigation tools.
Proactive Advice
We help clients understand fast-changing regulations, regulatory expectations, disclosure obligations and industry standards related to national security and CFIUS. Our focus is on mitigating problems before they arise, including:
- developing “best in class” compliance frameworks to identify and address data collection, sharing, use and retention practices that may give rise to national security, privacy, consumer protection or other regulatory risks;
- analyzing the viability, legality and risk of proposed products, practices and business models in connection with national security laws or privacy regulations;
- counseling organizations and individuals in sensitive and high-stakes matters relating to the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) and offering extensive practical, risk-based guidance on the law’s applicability, as well as conducting domestic and cross-border FARA investigations;
- counseling global companies on supply chain management and supply chain security, including compliance with forced labor laws such as the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA);
- conducting internal investigations and crafting national security and export controls policies and procedures tailored to both external and internal risks; and
- reviewing and implementing crisis management and disaster recovery plans.
Recent
Experience
Recent Engagements
Our representative engagements include:
- Carrier Global regarding CFIUS matters in its €12 billion acquisition of Viessmann Climate Solutions.
- Manulife Investment Management in CFIUS matters regarding a majority acquisition in Serverfarm.
- Sandvine Corporation in a major victory when the U.S. government took the extremely rare step of removing the company from the highly restrictive Entity List, where it had been placed due to accusations that its products were misused by foreign governments to infringe on civil liberties and other rights.
- An American computer networking company on national security matters.
- An American corporation in responding to requests from the House Select Committee on China in relation to the sourcing of materials from the Uyghur Region.
- An international cryptocurrency exchange platform in CFIUS matters regarding the potential sale of a subsidiary.
- A major sports association in submitting license applications with the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Controls seeking OFAC approval to interact with certain sanctioned persons and jurisdictions that may participate in related events or interact with the company’s legal and compliance team.
- A manufacturing and biotechnology company regarding national security issues, including engaging with CFIUS.
- A multinational manufacturing company as lead counsel regarding economic sanctions and foreign direct investment matters in connection with the cross-border acquisition of a multinational company.
- A non-U.S. steel manufacturer in connection with its acquisition of a U.S. company.
- A U.S. investment manager in obtaining CFIUS approval of the sale of a minority stake in its business to an Asian company.
- A U.S. private equity firm in CFIUS matters related to onshore and offshore acquisition structures.
- A U.S. private equity firm on compliance with the Foreign Agents Registration Act in connection with international partnership opportunities.
- A U.S. professional sports team in connection with reviewing FARA risk related to international partnerships.
- One of the world’s largest financial institutions reviewing export and economic espionage risks.
