Park Strategies, LLC OFAC Settlement: $12.2K (2020)

From on or about August 25, 2017 to on or about November 25, 2017, Park Strategies appears to have violated § 594.201 of the GTSR by dealing in the property or interests in property of Al-Barakaat Group of Companies Somalia Limited ("Al-Barakaat"), a Specially Designated Global Terrorist designated for its terrorist financing operations.

Park Strategies' Executive Vice President and Managing Director signed a binding contract, dated August 25, 2017, entitled "Authorization of Lobbying Services," that authorized Park Strategies "to engage in lobbying activity before the administrative, executive, and legislative branches of the United States government, and its political subdivisions during the effective term of this Agreement" for, and on behalf of, Al-Barakaat. The contract terms stipulated that Park Strategies would receive three separate payments of $10,000 from Al-Barakaat on the first of each month for a period of three months, totaling $30,000. The services Park Strategies agreed to provide were outside the scope of generally authorized activities under the GTSR, including the GTSR general license for legal services. Park Strategies was not a law firm at the time of the Apparent Violations.

Following execution of the contract, a person acting on behalf of Al-Barakaat sent Park Strategies the first payment of $10,000 on September 6, 2017, after which Park Strategies began performing services under the contract. Park Strategies' executives had actual knowledge of Al-Barakaat's SDGT status and actively participated in the signing of the contract.

The statutory maximum civil monetary penalty applicable in this matter is $302,584. OFAC determined that Park Strategies voluntarily self-disclosed the Apparent Violations, and that the Apparent Violations constitute a non-egregious case. Accordingly, under OFAC's Economic Sanctions Enforcement Guidelines, the base civil monetary penalty amount applicable in this matter is $15,000 (half of the $30,000 contract value). The final settlement amount of $12,150 reflects OFAC's consideration of the General Factors under the Enforcement Guidelines.

This enforcement action highlights sanctions compliance considerations for attorneys, law firms, and legal services organizations seeking to represent blocked persons as clients. Most sanctions programs administered by OFAC have general licenses authorizing the provision of certain enumerated legal services to persons blocked pursuant to those sanctions programs. The provision to blocked persons of legal services not enumerated in such general licenses requires a specific license from OFAC. Other related professional services such as lobbying, public relations, government affairs, consulting, and business development are not legal services, and are generally not covered by general licenses authorizing the provision of legal services to blocked persons.

Attorneys, law firms, or legal services organizations engaged in the practice of law (or persons acting on their behalf) cannot avail themselves of the authorizations contained in general or specific licenses authorizing the provision of legal services to blocked persons when engaging in activities that do not fall within the scope of generally or specifically licensed legal services. Attorneys, law firms, and legal services organizations should exercise caution and care regarding their sanctions obligations before knowingly engaging with blocked persons.

As noted in OFAC's Framework for Compliance Commitments, misinterpreting, or failing to understand the applicability of, OFAC's regulations, including general licenses, has previously caused organizations to commit sanctions violations. U.S. persons can mitigate sanctions risk by exercising caution when representing individuals or entities identified on OFAC's SDN List by understanding the full scope and applicability of authorizations as they relate to the prohibitions of the GTSR and other sanctions programs.

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