The International Enforcement Law Reporter

The International Enforcement Law Reporter is a monthly print and online journal covering news and trends in international enforcement law.

Since September 1985, the International Enforcement Law Reporter has analyzed the premier developments in both the substantive and procedural aspects of international enforcement law. Read by practitioners, academics, and politicians, the IELR is a valuable guide to the difficult and dynamic field of international law.

State Department Lawyer Quits Calling Biden Administration Policy on Asylum ‘Inhumane’

Thursday, October 14, 2021
Author: 
Marwah Adhoob
Volume: 
37
Issue: 
10
Abstract: 

Harold Koh, a top legal advisor at the State Department, resigned after the Biden administration’s use of Title 42 to expel hundreds of thousands of migrants, calling it “inhumane” and “illegal.”[1]

In an internal memo, Koh criticized the Biden administration’s use of Title 42 and was displeased with the administration’s use of the policy, especially considering he “strongly supports” the administration.[2]



[1] Unclassified Memo, Harold Hongju Koh Re: Ending Title 42 return flights to countries of origin, particularly Haiti, access here https://www.politico.com/f/?id=0000017c-4c4a-dddc-a77e-4ddbf3ae0000.

[2]  Id.

 

Swiss Banker Violates Bail in Spain to Return to Switzerland to Avoid U.S. Extradition

Wednesday, October 13, 2021
Author: 
Bruce Zagaris
Volume: 
37
Issue: 
10
Abstract: 

On September 27, 2021, Finews.com in Switzerland reported that Peter Rüegg, the former bank official of Privatbank IHAG, left Mallorca, Spain, where Spanish authorities arrested him on a United States extradition warrant for tax crimes.

China Declares All Cryptocurrency Transactions Illegal While the U.S. and EU Prepare Further Crypto Regulation

Tuesday, October 12, 2021
Author: 
Matteo Formaggi [1]
Volume: 
37
Issue: 
10
Abstract: 

On September 24, 2021, China officially declared illegal all crypto transactions.[1] China’s central bank stated that the cryptocurrency business activities seriously harm the safety of people’s assets.



[1]  China’s ban extends to crypto exchanges that do business with Chinese citizens even if those people are located outside of China

 

Canadian Fashion Mogul Waives Extradition to the U.S. as Canada Charges Him with Sexual Assault

Saturday, October 9, 2021
Author: 
Bruce Zagaris
Volume: 
37
Issue: 
10
Abstract: 

On October 1, 2021, 80-year-old Canadian former fashion mogul Peter Nygard consented to extradition to the United States to face United States federal sex trafficking charges.[1]



[1]    Kayla Rosen, Peter Nygard Consents to Extradition to the U.S., CTVNewsWinnipeg.ca, Oct. 1, 2021.

 

Founder of Russian Bank Pleads Guilty to Tax Fraud, Including Falsifying His Expatriation Statement

Friday, October 8, 2021
Author: 
Bruce Zagaris
Volume: 
37
Issue: 
10
Abstract: 

On October 1, 2021, Oleg Tinkov, also known as Oleg Tinkoff, the founder of a Russian bank, pleaded guilty to filing a materially false tax return and agreed to pay more than $500 million  in taxes, interest, and penalties.

Pandora Papers Sheds Light on Financial Secrecy Abuses

Thursday, October 7, 2021
Author: 
Bruce Zagaris
Volume: 
37
Issue: 
10
Abstract: 

On October 3, 2021, the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) released a new series of investigative stories and millions of leaked documents about political leaders, criminals, high-net-worth individuals, and the web of enablers who represented their clients in investing their funds in ways to keep confidential the identities of their clients and their assets.  These documents are known as the Pandora Papers.

Crypto Expert Plead Guilty to Assisting N. Korea Evade Sanctions

Thursday, September 30, 2021
Author: 
Marwah Adhoob
Volume: 
37
Issue: 
10
Abstract: 

On September 27, 2021, the U.S. District Court in Manhattan announced that a U.S. citizen pled guilty to conspiring to aid Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (North Korea) evade economic sanctions through the use of financial technology to hide illegal transactions. [1]

           Crypto expert, Virgil Griffith, 38, pled guilty to conspiracy to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act and Executive Order 13466, a law that prohibits U.S. citizens from “exporting any goods, services, or technology to the DPRK without a license from the Department of the Treasury, Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”).” Griffith allegedly violated that law by engaging with North Korean officials, advising them on how to evade sanctions.[2]



[1]    U.S. Attorney’s Office Southern District of New York  (SDNY), United States Citizen Pleads Guilty To Conspiring To Assist North Korea In Evading Sanctions, Press Rel. 21-254, https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdny/pr/united-states-citizen-pleads-guilty....

[2]    Id.

 

Huawei CFO Wanzhou Meg Enters into DPA with the U.S. to End the U.S. Extradition Case in Canada as China Frees Two Canadians

Tuesday, September 28, 2021
Author: 
Bruce Zagaris
Volume: 
37
Issue: 
10
Abstract: 

On September 24, 2021, Wanzhou Meng, 24, the Chief Financial Officer of Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd., entered into a deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) and was arraigned on charges of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud bank fraud, and wire fraud   in U.S. District Court in the Eastern District of New York.[1]



[1]    U.S. Department of Justice, Huawei CFO Wanzhou Meng Admits to Misleading Global Financial Institution, Press Rel. No. 21-925, Sept. 24, 2021.

 

Biden Administration Sanctions Ethiopian Civil War Perpetrators

Monday, September 27, 2021
Author: 
Marwah Adhoob
Volume: 
37
Issue: 
10
Abstract: 

On September 17, 2021, President Biden signed an executive order authorizing sanctions against the Ethiopian government, the Eritrean government, the Tigray People's Liberation Front, and the Amhara Regional Government, the parties that are allegedly involved in perpetrating the atrocities in the region.  While the U.S. did not immediately impose sanctions, the executive order is meant to alert the involved parties that the U.S. is prepared to take action.[1]



[1] FACT SHEET: Biden-Harris Administration Actions in Response to Ongoing Crisis in Northern Ethiopia, The White House, Press Rel., September 17, 2021, https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/09/17/....

 

U.S. Court in Philadelphia Holds Liberian Civilly Liable for Lutheran Church Massacres

Friday, September 24, 2021
Author: 
Bruce Zagaris
Volume: 
37
Issue: 
10
Abstract: 

On September 17, 2021, U.S. District Judge Petrese B. Tucker, ruled that Moses Thomas, who had lived in Philadelphia since emigrating from Liberia in 2000, is liable under the Victim and Torture Protection Act (VTPA)[1] and the Alien Tort Statute[2] for the slaughter in 1990 of more than 600 civilians at a Lutheran church in Monrovia, Liberia.[3]



[1]    28 U.S.C. §1350 note.

[2]    28 U.S.C. § 1350.

[3]    Jane W. v. Moses W. Thomas, U.S. Dist. Ct., E.D. Pa., Civil Action No. 18-569, Memorandum Opinion, Sept. 15, 2021 (hereafter Thomas opinion) chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/viewer.html?pdfurl=http%3A%2F%2Fcja.org%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F02%2FJane-v.-Thomas-Order-on-Summary-Judgment.9.15.2021.pdf&clen=465420&chunk=true.

 

 

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