Insights | Kobre & Kim — Disputes and Investigations

Client Alert June 14, 2022

Kobre & Kim Helps PRC Clients Enforce US $171M Award in BVI

Many parties, especially those based in Asia Pacific, soon discover that a recalcitrant debtor can frustrate enforcement of a hard-won arbitration award.
In cross-border enforcement campaigns, the debtor may throw up obscure legal challenges to cause delays and distraction.
A recent Kobre & Kim victory demonstrates how, through quick and strategic action, these distractions can be defeated and pressure can be maintained on the debtor.

Publications June 8, 2022

Alexandria Swette and Lara Levinson Explore Headwinds in the U.S. Art Market in Citywealth Magazine

Undeterred by the pandemic, the U.S. art market is still going strong, but market participants should not let their guard down. Art fraud continues to be an issue, and fresh headwinds caused by increased regulatory scrutiny – both in the U.S. and abroad – and by the rise of digital art and non-fungible tokens (NFTs) means continued vigilance is advised, Kobre & Kim’s Alexandria Swette and Lara Levinson explained when they sat down with Citywealth.

Publications May 18, 2022

Jason Kang, Chang Liu, Kairu Huang in Caijing: Chinese Companies Should Take Note of the Poison Pill

The implementation of a poison pill by Twitter’s board of directors in response to Elon Musk’s acquisition may have increased the final offer accepted by the board by up to US $1 billion, demonstrating the effectiveness of this measure at empowering the board. As Kobre & Kim’s Greater China-based lawyers Jason Kang and Chang Liu – together with analyst Kairu Huang – wrote in Caijing, Chinese companies can gain much from poison pills in corporate disputes.

Client Alert May 9, 2022

The Differences Between UK and EU Russian Sanctions

The United Kingdom and the European Union are two critical jurisdictions that have implemented influential sanctions regimes against Russian entities.
Given the UK’s departure from the EU, key differences exist that outside stakeholders must be attuned to.
Learn the subtle yet consequential details in this reference guide, put together by Kobre & Kim’s International Private Client team.

Publications May 4, 2022

Evelyn Sheehan and Carolina Leung Unpack Shifts in the U.S. DOJ’s Prosecutorial Reach of Foreign Defendants in The Anti-Corruption Report

Recent U.S. federal court decisions have reeled back the extraterritorial jurisdiction of the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), expanding due process rights and defenses for foreign defendants. Kobre & Kim’s Evelyn Sheehan and Carolina Leung unpack what this means in an article for The Anti-Corruption Report.

Publications May 3, 2022

Evelyn Sheehan, David McGill, Benjamin Sauter, Amanda Tuminelli in Chambers: Innovating Traditional Asset Recovery Tools to Recover Crypto

As digital asset and cryptocurrency fraud proliferate, recovering stolen funds means applying traditional asset recovery techniques in newer and more innovative ways. In Chambers’ latest International Fraud and Asset Tracing Global Practice Guide, Kobre & Kim’s Evelyn Sheehan, David McGill, Benjamin Sauter and Amanda Tuminelli walk through how, with the help of enhanced blockchain forensics, civil litigation and government seizures, victims of fraud can successfully make themselves whole again.

Publications April 22, 2022

Wade Weems, Chang Liu and Kairu Huang on U.S. Enforcement After the China Initiative in Caixin Global

The U.S. Department of Justice’s (DOJ) China Initiative has long been criticized for unfairly targeting Chinese nationals and people of Chinese descent, particularly professors and researchers. Its termination, however, does not signal relief – rather, the U.S. is moving on to a new Nation-State Threats Strategy, which has broader goals, targets and tools in mind. Kobre & Kim’s China-based lawyers Wade Weems and Chang Liu, together with specialist analyst Kairu Huang, unpacked the coming enforcement risks for Chinese entities in an article for Caixin Global.

Publications April 18, 2022

Michael Sherwin Unpacks Law Enforcement’s Challenges When Seizing Digital Currency

As criminals increasingly turn to cryptocurrencies, law enforcement agencies around the world have found themselves seizing more of the assets and having to learn how to handle the unique challenges of this new technology. Kobre & Kim’s Michael Sherwin, a former U.S. federal prosecutor, unpacked the issues when he spoke with Bloomberg.

Publications April 12, 2022

Miranda Ching Discusses Prosecutorial Independence of UK Serious Fraud Office in Fountain Court Chambers Podcast

Recent events – including continuing doubts about the UK Serious Fraud Office’s (SFO) existence, the ousting of the head of London’s Metropolitan Police, the lack of investigation into alleged misconduct by politicians and the sustained trend of private prosecutions – have led to questions about the independence of prosecution authorities in England and Wales. Kobre & Kim’s Miranda Ching – a former case controller and prosecutor at the SFO – shared her perspective during an episode of The Fountain Court Chambers Podcast.

Publications April 11, 2022

John Han Discusses Evergrande Offshore Bondholder Monetization Options with The Wall Street Journal

Though China Evergrande Group, the indebted Chinese property giant, has reached an agreement in principle with certain offshore creditors to pay legal fees in connection with restructuring negotiations, bondholders have options if restructuring negotiations eventually reach a stalemate. Kobre & Kim’s John Han, who has deep experience monetizing claims related to Greater China for distressed debt investors, told The Wall Street Journal how an enforcement scenario might unfold.

Publications April 8, 2022

John Han Discusses Evergrande Offshore Bondholder Monetization Options with The Wall Street Journal

Though China Evergrande Group, the indebted Chinese property giant, has reached an agreement in principle with certain offshore creditors to pay legal fees in connection with restructuring negotiations, bondholders have options if restructuring negotiations eventually reach a stalemate. Kobre & Kim’s John Han, who has deep experience monetizing claims related to Greater China for distressed debt investors, told The Wall Street Journal how an enforcement scenario might unfold.

Publications April 6, 2022

Jalil Asif KC, Peter Tyers-Smith and Ilona Groark Pen ICLG Chapter on Enforcing Foreign Judgments in Cayman

The Cayman Islands is a key offshore jurisdiction for judgment creditors in cross-border enforcement campaigns. Kobre & Kim’s Cayman-based Jalil Asif KC, Peter Tyers-Smith and Ilona Groark detailed the main insights in the jurisdiction for creditors in a chapter of International Comparative Legal Guide’s “Enforcement of Foreign Judgments 2022.”

Publications April 5, 2022

Kobre & Kim Analyst John Miller Co-Authors Global Governance Forum’s Inaugural Global Catastrophic Risk Index

Catastrophes hit countries in many forms, and their impact can be multiplied by a failure in governance and compounded by economic vulnerability and social instability. Policymakers and citizens alike should understand the nature of the risks facing their country to avoid disaster. Kobre & Kim analyst John Miller, a Global Governance Fellow for the Global Governance Forum, co-authored a report for the forum that captures these risks in the inaugural edition of the Global Catastrophic Risk Index.

Publications April 5, 2022

Benjamin Sauter Analyzes Whether Crypto Can Help Evade Russian Sanctions with Raconteur

With the Russian invasion of Ukraine, many in both countries have turned to crypto and digital currencies – Ukrainians received almost US $100 million in crypto donations, and ordinary Russians used crypto as a haven against the falling ruble and capital controls. But there is a concern that cryptocurrency can be used to facilitate wrongdoing, including to evade sanctions. Kobre & Kim’s Benjamin Sauter, who focuses on government enforcement and asset recovery in the crypto space, analyzed this issue when he spoke with the magazine Raconteur of The Times.

Publications April 5, 2022

Andrew Stafford KC, Timothy de Swardt, Melisa Ortes González, Calvin Koo on Crypto Jurisprudence in Common Law Jurisdictions

The landscape of blockchain technology and cryptocurrency has long seemed like a Wild West. But as Kobre & Kim’s Andrew Stafford KC, Timothy de Swardt, Melisa Ortes González and Calvin Koo detail in Commercial Dispute Resolution, in jurisdictions like the United Kingdom, the British Virgin Islands, Hong Kong and the United States, the sheriff is very much in town.