On March 29, the new UK Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act will come into force.

As Brexit bites, the UK Government will be in a position not just to maintain a sanctions status quo, but to go beyond current EU law.

For instance, the Act allows for sanctions on people who commit gross human rights violations under the so-called ‘Magnitsky amendment’. This has not yet been adopted by the 27 EU member states.

The UK Government will also gain the power to designate persons being sanctioned not only by name, but also by description, giving rise to significant compliance issues. And the review mechanism will be tightened preventing such persons immediately challenging regulations before the courts.

Meanwhile on November 5th what President Trump described as the ‘toughest ever’ sanctions regime was imposed by the US on Iran. Both the EU and the UK may now be out of kilter with the US on this area, but the new UK Act could mean a drift to mirroring the US approach more generally. This would mean a wider application of sanctions to whole geographical areas, groups of people and even the implementation of so-called ‘secondary’ (extraterritorial) sanctions.

In recent months, not only human rights violations, but also cyber security and chemical attacks have resulted in calls for sanctions.  It is very likely that in the coming years differences in foreign policy between the EU, the US and the UK will greatly affect the sanctions landscape.

This conference will focus on the impact of this development on corporates and financial institutions; examine the implications for enforcement and litigation issues and aim to give practical guidance.

Keynotes, expert speakers and panel sessions will cover the following topics:

• UK sanctions policy
• Recent developments in the US Sanctions regime
• Recent developments in the EU sanctions regime
• Impact of sanctions regimes on corporates and financial institutions and the global risks from a business perspective 
• Enforcement processes in the UK
• Sanctions challenges and litigation issues
• Trends and looking forward – interactive session for practitioners