Kathleen Hamann Quoted in Global Investigations Review: National Security Focus Takes Center Stage at DOJ

Excerpted from the May 2, 2022 issue of Global Investigations Review

At a recent New York City Bar Association event, Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco stated that “sanctions are the new FCPA,” and her comments created somewhat of a stir. However, many attorneys in the white collar defense bar have indicated that the overlap between national security and the FCPA (Foreign Corrupt Practices Act) are not particularly radical.

Pierce Atwood litigation partner Kathleen Hamann, a former FCPA prosecutor who also spent ten years at the State Department, said she believes that the DOJ is shifting to consider sanctions as a priority alongside the FCPA, rather than instead of it.

In fact, Kate mentioned that KleptoCapture – an interagency task force targeting Russian oligarchs who violate sanctions and other economic countermeasures – "is an extension of the initiatives the DOJ has been taking since the early 2000s.” As an example of the overlap between national security and corruption cases, Kate noted the oil-for-food scandal of the early 2000s, when billions of dollars were diverted from a UN program meant to allow Iraq to exchange oil for necessities.

Kate added, “Prosecutors working on sanctions and FCPA cases don’t investigate with blinders on. Sanctions [violations] and bribery often go hand-in-hand, which I think is what KleptoCapture is all about.”

The complete article by Anna Bianca Roach can be found in the May 2, 2022 edition of Global Investigations Review.