Financial Crimes Compliance
In the United States and across the globe, each day brings headlines of new investigations and penalties involving banks, broker-dealers, hedge funds, private equity, virtual currency, on line fantasy sports and other non-financial businesses. Increasing regulatory pressures demand that firms implement and maintain effective financial crimes compliance programs to meet ever-growing regulatory expectations.
Lewis Baach Kaufmann Middlemiss's experienced team of former senior in-house compliance professionals and law enforcement officials advises and represents financial institutions and businesses in the U.S. and around the world in connection with criminal, civil, and regulatory investigations and enforcement actions. Our areas of compliance expertise include:
- The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (“FCPA”) and anti-bribery and corruption compliance
- Anti-money laundering (“AML”) laws and regulations
- The economic sanctions programs administered and enforced by the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”)
- The ever-growing field of cyber-currencies and online funds transfers
- Best practices for the prevention of human trafficking
Companies can often mitigate or avoid enforcement issues by enhancing their financial crimes compliance procedures. We offer a unique perspective based on our combination of practical in-house operational experience and our prior law enforcement roles. We help our clients meet regulatory expectations, detect and prevent money laundering, stop corruption, and avoid inadvertent violations of complex and technical sanctions laws.
Our financial crimes compliance practice is varied. We have successfully helped foreign and domestic clients establish effective compliance programs that distinguish them from their peers and help them gain, and cement, access to the U.S. markets. We have also advised clients with respect to FCPA, AML and sanctions risks associated with transactions and acquisitions. We help our clients find efficient and reasonable compliance solutions, and represent them with criminal and regulatory authorities should problems arise.
Representative Matters
Advised the World Bank Integrity Vice-President with respect to a corruption related matter involving companies in India
Served as an expert witness for FINRA AML-related matters
Advised foreign and domestic financial institutions and companies from various business sectors on AML, anti-bribery and corruption and sanctions compliance best practices, including advice designed to help clients obtain and maintain correspondent banking relationships
Represented shareholders of a foreign bank in negotiations with FinCEN over USA PATRIOT Act section 311 designation
Advised multiple clients with respect to BSA and money laundering issues involving virtual currency
Advised numerous companies in the U.S. and abroad with respect to sanctions issues
In the News
Mr. Francos* was quoted in the article saying, “If someone received a bribe, then someone had to have paid the bribe,” he said. “Companies should be well prepared [to be investigated].” He continued to say, many Argentinian companies that are contracted by the state do not have established policies in terms of compliance and integrity, and will likely rush to put together new compliance programmes. Francos said “this shock could be good” to improve standards quickly. “This [scenario] creates a problem for companies, but also an opportunity that will bring change to Argentina’s business culture,” he said.
*Mr. Francos is admitted to practice only in Buenos Aires; not engaged in the practice of law in the District of Columbia.
Global Investigations Review, November 13, 2017It would not be out of the ordinary, then, for a VEB official to have brief courtesy meetings with New York bankers about continuing business, though they would not be allowed to discuss new bond deals, said Aaron Wolfson, a partner at Lewis Baach who previously worked at JPMorgan and prosecuted banks for skirting sanctions.
The New York Times, June 4, 2017On Monday, Dec. 12, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a unanimous decision clarifying subsection 1 of the bank fraud statute, 18 U.S.C. §1344, in Shaw v. United States. Notwithstanding a veritable ocean of case law, regulations and statutes that delineate the difference between a bank’s property and that of its customers, the court quickly pushed such technical arguments to the side, holding that — for the purposes of the bank fraud statute — there is no practical difference between targeting a bank customer’s funds and targeting the bank’s own funds.
Law360, December 13, 2016“The court’s decision is in keeping with the long-standing principle that a fraud can be prosecuted under the criminal law even if the victim does not suffer a loss — which is an important distinction between criminal fraud and civil fraud,” said A. Katherine Toomey, a partner at Lewis Baach PLLC.
Law360, December 12, 2016Next week, for the second time in two years, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear argument in a case for the purpose of resolving a split in the circuits concerning the scope of the bank fraud statute — 18 U.S.C. §1344.
Law360, September 29, 2016- "The degree of cooperation between U.S. and Latin American authorities is at an all-time high,” says attorney Adam Kaufmann.Inside Counsel, August 5, 2016
In this exclusive Of Counsel piece, Julie Copeland and Mirella deRose, take a look at the “ABCs” of compliance.
July 7, 2016A U.S. District Court in the Eastern District of Virginia imposed a below-Guidelines sentence for a Syrian-born U.S.citizen who pleaded guilty to providing equipment to forces opposing the Syrian regime in violation of U.S. sanctions laws.
Associated Press, June 10, 2016- KYC360, May 3, 2016
- Changes to Iran and Cuba restrictions make business simplier for UK and European insurersInsurance Day, April 21, 2016
*Mr. Francos contributing author and is admitted to practice only in Buenos Aires; not engaged in the practice of law in the District of Columbia.
KYC360, April 4, 2016- Law 360, March 30, 2016
- The Wall Street Journal, March 9, 2016
- Law360, August 11, 2015
- Wall Street Journal, January 30, 2015
- U.S. Regulators have vowed to hold more individuals responsible for controls failures at financial institutions and the spotlight on two compliance officers has already stirred concerns in the profession about being penalized for decisions made on the jobThe Wall Street Journal. Risk & Compliance Journal., September 15, 2014
- The Treasury Department's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network issued guidance Thursday on recognizing financial activity that could be tied to human smuggling and human trafficking.The Wall Street Journal. Risk and Compliance Journal, September 12, 2014
- ABA Bank Compliance, July 2014
- November 21, 2013
- NYPD Allows Civilian Complaint Board to Prosecute Cops for MisconductNew York Daily News, May 9, 2013
- ACAMS moneylaundering.com, January 29, 2013
Publications, Presentations & Events
Eric Lewis focuses on three key areas: (1) the widening of the net from sanctioned individuals to their families; (2) the application of the evasion provisions to foreign persons; (3) the bringing of new classes within existing sanctions.
The New York Law Journal, December 8, 2017- November 2017