GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS. An Introduction to our services for sovereign clients

Transcription

1 GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS An Introduction to our services for sovereign clients

2 GLOBAL REACH AND EXPERIENCED RESPONSE How progressive governments and their agencies interpret and influence developments within the world s complex political, regulatory and media environment is crucial to their diplomatic and economic success. In a globalised world where international relationships are key, governments have to build effective policy and strategic communications in order to manage myriad risks and make the most of the opportunities and connections that open up. This is made all the more challenging as the legal, regulatory and public policy environment is constantly evolving affected by politics, history, legal decisions, interest groups, precedent and the news of the day. The withdrawal of the UK from the European Union provides a real opportunity for States to shape their future trading and investment relationships with the UK and the EU-27. Our highly experienced Government Affairs team is a recognised leader in providing topical, practical and tailored advice and support to States and State-owned entities all over the globe. Governments, State-owned entities and sovereign wealth funds require unique services, and DLA Piper is uniquely placed to provide them. With lawyers and policy professionals located in over 40 countries across Asia-Pacific, Europe, Africa, the Middle East and the Americas, we provide global coverage across key political regions and can deploy quickly to deal with our client s issues. We are the only law firm with a dedicated Middle East & North Africa Government Affairs practice, and our experts can lead clients through the complexities of building relationships and delivering strategic policy solutions in the region. Our Government Affairs team takes a cross-disciplinary approach to engagements, because the path to success is unlikely to be linear, requiring coordination in different forums. Working intimately with the firm s disputes, regulatory and specialist sectoral teams in all our locations, we devise tailored, proportionate and cost-effective responses, whatever the task. Our worldwide team combines a diverse group of legal and political experts, including: International and domestic lawyers Politicians, including parliamentarians and former government ministers Diplomats and senior civil servants Journalists Officials from the European Commission and other international organisations 02 Government Affairs

3 OUR GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS SERVICES We can offer you a wide range of support and services whether you are involved in negotiations with third countries, seeking to recover state assets, or looking to upskill the capacity of civil servants and officials and develop your policy making functions. We will help you understand the issues involved and give you the tools you need to deliver successful outcomes. TRADE NEGOTIATION Our experienced team of trade negotiators advise Ministries of Trade on all aspects of international trade and investment. We offer gap analysis of existing arrangements, identification of key markets and opportunities and support in implementation of customised export and FDI strategies. ASSET TRACING AND RECOVERY We provide political strategic input to help shape clients asset recovery strategies. Our global network of multilingual civil and criminal litigators and asset recovery specialists provide tailored services from immediate response, such as restraint and disclosure, to pursuing recovery actions and compensation claims. PUBLIC INTERNATIONAL LAW ADVICE We are experienced in acting for and advising States and State-owned entities on key questions of public international law from bilateral treaties to customary international law. Our services include analysis, advice, and drafting key texts, as well as support in strategic communications and international dialogue. TRAINING AND CAPACITY BUILDING. We provide bespoke consultancy and technical legal services and training to aid in building the long-term capabilities of organisations and their leadership. Unlike other firms, our team is drawn from skilled professionals with experience in governments, parliaments, national regulatory authorities and international organisations. 03

4 WHAT WE OFFER Analysis & drafting: Assisting decision-makers with analysis of strategic and legal considerations, and the legislative drafting of intergovernmental or industry-focused cooperation agreements. Assessing developments: Advising third country governments in assessing political and regulatory developments (e.g. human rights and commercial issues) in the context of negotiating bilateral and multilateral free trade agreements. Capacity building: Providing government ministries and agencies with capacity building and training to develop and enhance policy making skills and ensure effective engagement with European and international institutions and regulators. Institution building: Assisting governments undergoing political transition or developing their governance structures to establish fit-for-purpose institutional mechanisms for internal coordination across and range of domestic and international organisations and stakeholders. Asset recovery strategies: Assisting governments engaged in the tracing and pursuit of looted sovereign assets across multiple jurisdictions, factoring in diplomatic, political and strategic considerations in the development and implementation of legal strategies in the lead up to asset seizures and the enforcement of arbitral awards in key jurisdictions. Risk mapping: Mapping the set of emerging political influencers and key stakeholders in a particular juristiction. Protecting assets: Advising commercial sovereign institutions, including central banks and sovereign wealth funds, to deploy and enforce effective legal strategies to ring-fence and protect sovereign assets in the context of challenges to their authority by adverse parties. OUR RECENT EXPERIENCE INCLUDES: Advice to a sovereign wealth fund which directly manages significant commercial operations in relation to its position under international sanctions and its ownership and control of assets located in a number of jurisdictions. Instructed by the UK Government to produce a detailed analysis of the EU-Canada Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA). The key deliverable from this instruction was a comprehensive Business Opportunities Report, which identifies opportunities for UK businesses emanating from CETA, particularly with respect to the elimination and reduction of customs duties. Providing a South Asian Government with strategic trade advice focused on delivering technical support, legal analysis and a wider influencing strategy at a EU and national level to secure improved access for that country into the EU s textiles and clothing market. Strategic trade and legal advice to a North African Government in relation to its negotiation of a Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement with the EU. Advice to a North African central bank with respect to complex public international law questions of state recognition and support in engaging with international organisations and commercial third parties. Advice to a newly elected democratic government in Asia on the recovery in UK, Singapore, Malaysia and Myanmar of substantial assets fraudulently misappropriated by members of the former regime through the central banking system and government owned instrumentalities. Representing the Zambian Government in its successful anti-corruption and asset recovery claim against former President Chiluba and his cohorts in the English High Court and Court of Appeal. Designing and delivering a training programme to Saudi Arabia s Ambassadors to each EU Member State in relation to the operation of and engagement with the EU institutions. Advice to the Qatari government on the implementation of the UN Convention against Corruption including a framework for asset recovery and mutual legal assistance. 04 Government Affairs

5 BREXIT: OPPORTUNITIES FOR ENHANCED COOPERATION The UK s historic vote to leave the EU raises significant challenges and potential opportunities for all States that trade with and invest in the UK and Europe. Key issues to be tackled during the negotiation period and beyond include resolving existing free trade agreements between the EU and third countries, as well as the UK s ambitious plans for forging new agreements with international partners and further liberalising world trade. DLA Piper has the benefit of senior counsel and advisors associated with and within the London and Brussels based Government Affairs teams. They include former diplomats and civil servants, the former EU legal adviser to the UK Parliament, former and current elected officials, journalists and media experts, and former staff of regulatory bodies and political parties. Our team is ready to assist you with targeted intelligence gathering, proactive contingency planning, opportunity identification and strategic engagement to help safeguard your interests and maximise opportunities. WHAT WE OFFER Intelligence and tailored briefings: with state-of-the-art monitoring tools and direct access to key stakeholders in the Brexit negotiations, our team delivers analysis and reports covering multiple EU countries to provide a detailed counterbalance to media headlines. Additionally, our strong relationships with think tanks, academic institutions and designated experts allow us to construct an extensive impact assessment tailored to your needs. The service includes a quarterly presentation for Ministers and senior officials / executives on what the latest Brexit developments mean for you. Strategic Advice: our advisers will guide you through the labyrinth of institutional procedures and protocols that are the basis of the Brexit process. We will assist in mitigating the challenges and optimising the opportunities that Brexit and its follow-up will bring. We can also provide strategic advocacy and targeted interest representation during all phases of the negotiations. Support in Trade Negotiations: we are wellplaced to assist non-eu countries in pushing forward bilateral trade negotiations with the UK. In particular, we will help you to position yourselves as the UK s trade partner of choice, and to identify and articulate your trade priorities and any defensive strategies to protect domestic or developing industries. Furthermore, many of the elements underpinning enhanced two-way trade do not need to wait for formal trade negotiations, so we will help you to drive forward work on these issues in order to support increased exports and direct investment. 05

6 DLA PIPER NETWORK DLA PIPER RELATIONSHIP FIRMS AUSTRALIA Brisbane Melbourne Perth Sydney AUSTRIA Vienna BAHRAIN Manama BELGIUM Antwerp Brussels BRAZIL São Paulo CANADA Calgary Edmonton Montreal Toronto Vancouver Yellowknife CHINA Beijing Hong Kong Shanghai CZECH REPUBLIC Prague DENMARK Aarhus Copenhagen FINLAND Helsinki FRANCE Paris GERMANY Cologne Frankfurt Hamburg Munich HUNGARY Budapest ITALY Milan Rome JAPAN Tokyo KUWAIT Kuwait City LUXEMBOURG Luxembourg MEXICO Mexico City MOROCCO Casablanca NETHERLANDS Amsterdam NEW ZEALAND Auckland Wellington NORWAY Oslo OMAN Muscat POLAND Warsaw PORTUGAL Lisbon QATAR Doha ROMANIA Bucharest RUSSIA Moscow St. Petersburg SAUDI ARABIA Al Khobar Jeddah Riyadh SINGAPORE Singapore SLOVAK REPUBLIC Bratislava SOUTH AFRICA Johannesburg SOUTH KOREA Seoul SPAIN Madrid SWEDEN Stockholm THAILAND Bangkok UKRAINE Kyiv UNITED ARAB EMIRATES Abu Dhabi Dubai UNITED KINGDOM Birmingham Edinburgh Leeds Liverpool London Manchester Sheffield UNITED STATES Albany Atlanta Atlantic City Austin Baltimore Boston Chicago Dallas Houston Los Angeles Miami Minneapolis New York Northern Virginia Philadelphia Phoenix Raleigh Sacramento San Diego San Francisco San Juan Seattle Short Hills Silicon Valley Washington, DC Wilmington ANGOLA Luanda BOTSWANA Gaborone BURUNDI Bujumbura CHILE Santiago COLOMBIA Bogota CROATIA Zagreb EGYPT Cairo ETHIOPIA Addis Ababa GHANA Accra KENYA Nairobi COOPERATION FIRM BRAZIL Rio de Janeiro São Paulo MAURITIUS Port Louis MOZAMBIQUE Maputo NAMIBIA Windhoek NIGERIA Lagos PERU Lima RWANDA Kigali TANZANIA Dar es Salaam Mwanza UGANDA Kampala ZAMBIA Lusaka 06 Government Affairs

7 KEY CONTACTS John Forrest Head of Global Trade and Government Affairs, London T M john.forrest@dlapiper.com Maher Ghanma Head of Government Affairs, Middle East T M maher.ghanma@dlapiper.com Lord Tim Clement-Jones Head of Government Affairs, UK T M tim.clement-jones@dlapiper.com Paul Hardy Brexit Director T M paul.hardy@dlapiper.com Scott Horton Senior Consultant T M scott.horton@dlapiper.com Baroness Elizabeth Symons Head of Government Affairs, International T M baroness.elizabeth.symons@dlapiper.com Please visit our website to find relevant information on our Government Affairs team, including biographies and experience for the key contacts listed above. 07

8 DLA Piper is a global law firm operating through various separate and distinct legal entities. Further details of these entities can be found at This publication is intended as a general overview and discussion of the subjects dealt with, and does not create a lawyer-client relationship. It is not intended to be, and should not be used as, a substitute for taking legal advice in any specific situation. DLA Piper will accept no responsibility for any actions taken or not taken on the basis of this publication. This may qualify as Lawyer Advertising requiring notice in some jurisdictions. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Copyright 2017 DLA Piper. All rights reserved. MAY 17 DLA.PIP.1436