FAQS

Always seek the advice of a specialist firm (such as Proelium Law LLP), who have experience of setting up businesses abroad. Going forwards connections with a locally based, trusted law firm, who can advise you further is important. Make sure your seek advice on Anti-Money Laundering and Counter Terrorism Financing issues (AML&CTF) as well as the UK Bribery Act and US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.

Some important matters to be aware of when thinking of setting up a business abroad:

Falling foul of sanctioned organisations or individuals or restrictions imposed on the staff who work for you as a result of sanctions;
Understand how to approach the issue of due diligence in a foreign country;
Failing to have the correct insurance in place;
Contributing inadvertently to money-laundering or the financing of terrorism;
Your assets being seized due to your business being an unlawful corporate structure;
Understanding what is the best corporate structure to have in place;
Local employment requirements;
Deciding if you should set up a branch, representative office or a head office.

Negotiating problems abroad can often be tricky. You need to contact a specialist law firm, such as Proelium Law LLP, who have experience of reconnaissance, asset tracking and asset recovery. They will use their international connections to trace the location of your goods before helping you to reclaim them.

Contact us immediately. We will work to ensure you understand the UK Terrorism Act 2000 (for UK staff) or the Patriot Act (for US staff), both of which say that the payment of ransoms is forbidden. Ideally you should also try to establish relationships with a local, well-connected entity, who will activate their network to provide ground-truth on the situation and to facilitate the release of your employee. This is a very specialist area of the law and should be handled with extreme care and caution. Proelium Law LLP has this capability and is experienced in these matters.  You should be aware of:

Extra-territorial reach of the UK Terrorism Act 2000 or the US Patriot Act;
Inadvertently funding terrorism;
Making sure you understand insurance policy requirements;
Conducting hostage release action unilaterally that compromises undeclared, official efforts.

Certain goods, that you may think are innocently used for night fishing can be used for military or intelligence applications. These could be classed as having ‘Dual Use’ and caution should be taken when selling or moving these goods abroad. You should contact a specialist law firm who can give you advice on the subject of ‘dual-use’ goods. You want to make sure you are not selling goods to sanctioned individuals or organisations; make sure you get bar-taut contracts and due diligence in place as well as robust insurance.

Surveillance is a grey area which, while not illegal per se in most countries, has strict boundaries that need to be understood.  Speak to us about this more arcane specialism within the defence and security fields. By using a law firm to manage such sensitive tasks you will ensure that you remain within the confines and spirit of the law at all times. Proelium Law LLP should be your law firm of choice for any surveillance related issues.

You should be aware of:

‘Cowboy’ investigators in the market place;
Carrying out surveillance in countries where it is strictly forbidden;
Unregulated activities that are illegal;
Poor professionalism that could prove costly and ultimately make the situation far worse.