Court of Appeal ruling on challenging sanctions designations

0 Comments

The joined appeals in Dalston Projects Ltd and others v Secretary of State for Transport and Shvidler v Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs presented the first opportunity for the Court of Appeal to provide guidance on the correct approach to challenges to sanctions designations brought under section 38 of the Sanctions […]

Don’t let an armed conflict get in the way of London litigation

0 Comments

The full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 was a calamitous event which has given rise to extraordinary hardship and global repercussions that continue to reverberate. Away from the battlefield itself, many have been displaced and businesses disrupted globally. One self-interested concern that arose in the legal community, inevitably, was how this would impact on […]

Londongrad forever? Why the UK may never seize Russian assets

0 Comments

Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, plenty of bold words have been uttered, calling for Russian assets in the UK to be seized. Suggestions included taking over the mansions of Russian oligarchs in London to house Ukrainian refugees, taking assets held in UK banks to fund its war effort or to help rebuild Ukraine […]

Procedural aspects of proceedings before the EU courts

0 Comments

The Academy of European Law recently held a seminar on sanctions in the EU’s external relations. The seminar covered the legal aspects of restrictive measures applied by the European Union, including the recent jurisprudence of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU). Anna Bradshaw gave a presentation on the procedural aspects of proceedings […]

Watch: sanctions de-listings in the UK, EU and US webinar

0 Comments

Earlier this week, Michael O’Kane hosted a discussion on the different approaches of the courts and governments in the UK, EU and USA to the issue of removing people and companies from targeted sanctions lists, including analysing recent case law. The recording of the webinar is now available to view. The speakers  – Michael O’Kane, […]

Eugene Shvidler’s case is going to UK Supreme Court

0 Comments

The UK Supreme Court has granted permission to Eugene Shvidler to appeal against the Court of Appeal judgment upholding sanctions against him. Michael O’Kane acts for Mr Shvidler. This will be an important case on the UK courts’ approach to targeted sanctions challenges. The UK designated Mr Shvidler in March 2022 for being associated with […]

Overview of sanction regimes in UK, EU and US

0 Comments

In this podcast, Michael O’Kane, Maya Lester KC talk to Dr Christian Rosinus, of Rosinus Partner, about sanction law. They begin by outlining the general EU, UK, and US sanctions jurisdictions, highlighting their similarities and differences. Michael then explains the applicability of UK sanctions and Maya addresses the influence of post-Brexit case law by the […]

Sanctions on wealthy figures linked to Russia are Kafkaesque

0 Comments

Since Russia invaded Ukraine two years ago, the UK, US, EU and other jurisdictions have imposed a plethora of sanctions on Russia, including on business figures who are believed to have links with the Kremlin. In the UK, a designated person can challenge their designation, first to the minister who made the designation and, if […]

NCA ducks litigation risk in first seizure of sanctioned assets

0 Comments

In the first action of its kind, earlier this week, the National Crime Agency (NCA) secured the forfeiture of sanctioned funds under the Proceeds of Crime Act. The NCA had argued that the money, worth £780,000, was held for the benefit of Russian oligarch Petr Aven despite not being in his name. The money had […]

The Guide to Sanctions – fifth edition

0 Comments

Anna Bradshaw and Alistair Jones have contributed a chapter to Global Investigations Review‘s Guide to Sanctions, which is in its fifth edition. The guide is written by contributors from the expanding field of sanctions enforcement and dissects the topic in a practical fashion, from every stakeholder’s perspective. The chapter that Anna and Alistair wrote, ‘Representing […]