DOJ Action Highlights Dueling Export Control, Anti-Discrimination Risks

Pillsbury Global Trade & Sanctions Law Team

In a recent enforcement action against GM, the Department of Justice (DOJ) Civil Rights Division emphasized that employers subject to export control obligations must still comply with federal laws against discrimination on the basis of immigration status, national origin or citizenship. Guidance accompanying the enforcement action indicates that the DOJ has expectations of companies in their hiring processes that may create challenges for efforts to comply with export control regulations that protect sensitive goods, software and technology.

In “Where Employment and Trade Compliance Intersect—Protecting Your Company in a World of Dueling Enforcement Risks for Export Controls and Anti-Discrimination,” colleagues Aaron R. Hutman, Julia E. Judish and Toochi L. Ngwangwa explore this recent action, the new guidance and the competing compliance obligations that companies will need to navigate as a result.