www.FARA.us

Just as the United States uses the Foreign Agents Registration Act (“FARA”) to try to shed light on foreign influence in American politics, Australia and Israel have laws that attempt to ensure similar transparency in their own governments.

Like FARA, Australia’s Foreign Influence Transparency Scheme (“FITS”) Act defines the “registrable activities” that, if undertaken, require a person to register under the Act. These activities include lobbying, which the Act defines as representing the interests of any person in any government or political process or ...

The Department of Justice (“DOJ”) announced on August 31, 2020, that a businesswoman who attempted to influence U.S. officials to drop civil forfeiture proceedings and a criminal investigation into the embezzlement of billions of dollars from a company wholly owned by the Government of Malaysia pleaded guilty to a violation of the Foreign Agents Registration Act (“FARA”).

According to DOJ, Nickie Mali Lum Davis of Honolulu, Hawaii, along with her coconspirators, was paid at least $3 million by Foreign National A to lobby the President of the United States, the Attorney ...

In line with its increased focus on foreign funding for U.S. universities, the Department of Education (DOE) launched a new online portal to facilitate reporting of foreign gifts and contracts valued at more than $250,000. Such reporting is required by Section 117 of the Higher Education Act.

According to DOE, billions of dollars in funds from foreign sources to U.S. higher education institutions have gone unreported. The new online portal requires universities to provide more information about foreign funding, including answering specific questions about each transaction ...

Several newly-released advisory opinions on the Foreign Agents Registration Act (“FARA”) demonstrate the Department of Justice’s (“DOJ”) exceedingly broad view of the statute’s scope.  These opinions signal that organizations working with foreign entities may not be able to claim exemptions previously thought to apply to their work.  This latest guidance is in line with DOJ’s efforts to prioritize enforcement of FARA.

Opinion to U.S. Nonprofit Organization

In a March 13, 2020 opinion concerning a U.S. nonprofit organization that received a grant from a foreign ...

In an attempt to clarify the scope of the concept of “agency” in context of the Foreign Agents Registration Act (“FARA”), the Department of Justice’s FARA Unit posted guidance earlier this month.

In May, the FARA Unit posted an explainer on the scope of “agency” under FARA, stating a commitment to increase transparency around enforcement of the statute and explaining that because FARA regulates expressive activities, “it is important that the standards governing its application be clear.” Notably, courts have used the Restatements of Agency as a guide in ...

Following its collection of public comment on the reporting requirements for foreign gifts and contracts with American universities, the Department of Education (DOE) has released additional information on the requirements.

Section 117 of the Higher Education Act requires that institutions report to the federal government any gift or contract with a foreign source valued at $250,000 or more “considered alone or in combination with all other gifts from or contracts with that foreign source within a calendar year.” In February, DOE requested a budgetary review of its new ...

The Foreign Agents Registration Act (“FARA”) has been in place since 1938.  During its eight decades of existence, the statute has been administered and enforced by different governmental bodies under varying arrangements.  Below is a description of FARA’s administration and enforcement from a historical perspective.

Initial FARA Enforcement at the Department of State (1938-1942)

As originally enacted in 1938, FARA tasked the Secretary of State with managing the foreign agent registration program.[1]  At the time, Secretary of State Cordell Hull opposed this statutory ...

In line with recent attempts to limit foreign influence in the United States, the U.S. State Department has designated five major Chinese state-run media companies as “foreign missions.”

The Foreign Missions Act defines a foreign mission as an entity that is “substantially owned or effectively controlled” by a foreign government.[1] Designating a company as a “foreign mission” requires it to adhere to requirements similar to those imposed on embassies and consulates in the U.S. The Act requires each company to register the locations of any properties they own or rent ...

The Department of Education (DOE) has provided clarity on the reporting requirements for foreign gifts to and contracts with American universities after stepping up its scrutiny of such funding. DOE’s increased concern with foreign funding for universities has led to the arrest of a Harvard professor, who is charged with concealing payments he received from the Chinese government for research.

Section 117 of the Higher Education Act requires that institutions report to the federal government any gift or contract with a foreign source valued at $250,000 or more “considered ...

On October 22, the Department of Justice filed criminal charges against Imaad Shah Zuberi, a Southern California venture capitalist, alleging violations of the Foreign Agents Registration Act (“FARA”) and other laws. Zuberi, who ran a venture capital firm called Avenue Ventures, has agreed to plead guilty to the charges.

The Department of Justice (“DOJ”) alleged that Zuberi used a portion of the funds he received through Avenue Ventures to attempt to persuade high-level U.S. public officials to take actions favorable to his clients. Specifically, DOJ alleged that ...