Nicholas Klein

Partner

About

Nicholas Klein has significant experience advising clients on international trade and national security matters, including national security reviews before the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), U.S. export controls, economic sanctions, and mitigation of foreign ownership, control or influence (FOCI) under industrial security regulations.

Nick has extensive experience advising U.S. companies and foreign investors in understanding and allocating CFIUS risk, determining whether filings are mandatory or advisable, and navigating the CFIUS process. He represents clients in the aerospace and defense, telecommunications, financial services, manufacturing, software, professional services, cybersecurity, life sciences, biotechnology, energy, and emerging technology sectors, among many others.

Nick has been named to Foreign Investment Watch’s Top Advisors List for 2022, which recognizes "top lawyers who provide legal advice concerning national security reviews of foreign investments in the US and abroad."

Nick regularly counsels clients on complex compliance, licensing, and enforcement matters related to the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), Export Administration Regulations (EAR), the embargoes and sanctions programs administered by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), federal firearms regulations, nuclear-related export controls, and anti-boycott regulations.

He has considerable experience designing and implementing compliance programs and corporate policies regarding U.S. export controls and economic sanctions laws. Nick also assists companies with trade compliance assessments and internal investigations, voluntary disclosures, licensing, and export classification.

While in law school, Nick clerked at the Office of the United States Attorney and worked for Hon. Timothy M. Tymkovich and Hon. Neil M. Gorsuch, both of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit. Prior to his legal career, Nick was an officer and paratrooper in the United States Army, serving as a U.S. Army Ranger and an airborne jumpmaster.

Nick maintains an active pro bono practice advocating on behalf of military veterans.

Areas of FocusRegulatory and Government Affairs

Bar admissionsDistrict of Columbia

CourtsUnited States Court of Appeals for the Federal CircuitUnited States Court of International Trade

EXPERIENCE

Representative Transactional Matters include:

STORE Capital Corporation in its $14 billion acquisition by GIC and Oak Street Capital, a division of Blue Owl Capital
John Menzies plc in its $751 million acquisition by Agility Public Warehousing K.S.C.P
Koura Global, a subsidiary of Orbia Advance Corporation S.A.B. de C.V., in its acquisition of Silatronix, Inc., a battery technology company
insightsoftware in its $1 billion investment from Hg Capital
GMM Pfaudler Ltd. in the reorganization of the Pfaudler Group
JGC Holdings Corporation in its investment in NuScale Power, LLC, a developer of small modular reactors
Parasol Renewable Energy LLC in the $433 million sale of Clēnera to Enlight Renewable Energy Ltd.
Ecwid Inc. in its $500 million acquisition by Lightspeed POS Inc., global e-commerce platform
Learning Technologies Group in its $394 million acquisition of GP Strategies Corporation
Montana Aerospace AG in its pending €260 million acquisition of ASCO Industries
Stantec, Inc. in its $500 million acquisition of the U.S. engineering and consulting business of Cardno Limited
Neva SGR SPA, Intesa Sanpaolo Group's venture capital fund, in its investment in Skydweller Aero Inc.
Noosphere Ventures with its acquisition of certain assets of Firefly Systems
RocketLab USA, Inc. in its $80 million acquisition of SolAero Holdings, Inc.
TDK Corporation with respect to its acquisition of Chirp Microsystems, Inc.
A. Schulman, Inc. with the CFIUS and international trade aspects of its $2.25 billion acquisition by LyondellBasell Industries N.V.*
Cardinal Health, Inc. with the international trade aspects of its $6.1 billion acquisition of Medtronic plc's medical supplies businesses*
Cavium, Inc. with the international trade aspects of its $6 billion acquisition by Marvell Technology Group Ltd.*
Dürr AG with the CFIUS and international trade aspects of its acquisition of the industrial environmental technology business of Babcock & Wilcox Enterprises, Inc.*
Esterline Technologies Corp. with the national security and international trade aspects of its $4 billion acquisition by TransDigm Group Inc.*
Fortress Investment Group LLC with the CFIUS and international trade aspects of its $3.3 billion acquisition by SoftBank.*
GM Cruise with the CFIUS and international trade aspects of its $2.25 billion investment by SoftBank.*
Intel Corporation with the national security and international trade aspects of its sale of Wind River Systems, Inc. to TPG Capital.*
Peraton Corp., an affiliate of Veritas Capital, with the international trade aspects its $690 million acquisition of the government IT services business of Harris Corporation.*
Rockwell Collins, Inc. with the CFIUS and international trade aspects of its $30 billion acquisition by United Technologies Corporation.*
StandardAero, Inc., an aerospace MRO provider, with the national security and international trade aspects of several transactions.*
Trip.com, a Chinese travel service company, in forming a strategic partnership and joint venture with TripAdvisor, Inc.*
XL Group with the CFIUS and international trade aspects its $15.3 billion acquisition by AXA SA.*

Representative Compliance Matters include:

Advising companies, particularly technology companies, on the impacts of U.S. sanctions and export controls on Russia, Belarus, and Ukraine to their operations in those countries.
Conducting numerous internal investigations and prepared and favorably resolved voluntary disclosures to BIS (EAR), DDTC (ITAR) and OFAC (sanctions) for U.S. and non-U.S. companies across a broad range of sectors, including IT services, software and software services, e-commerce, cybersecurity, defense contracting, aerospace MRO, manufacturing, semiconductors, energy infrastructure and equipment, and telecommunications.
Developing and implementing all aspects of compliance programs for several multinational companies, including policies and procedures, export classifications, export licensing, third-party contracts, distribution and vendor assessment, know-your-customer screening, and compliance with export controls, economic sanctions, anti-bribery/FCPA, anti-money laundering, anti-boycott, and customs regulations in global business operations.
Managing ITAR-related registration and notification obligations for multiple portfolio companies of U.S. private equity funds and U.S. defense contractors.
Evaluating export control classifications for numerous products, software and technology, including manufactured goods, composites, semiconductors, artificial intelligence, sensors, satellite and spacecraft, clean energy, and encryption, among others. Preparing Encryption Licensing Arrangements, encryption classification determinations, and assisting with required encryption-related filings under export controls.
Counseling major European automotive manufacturer in connection with China-specific U.S. export controls compliance matters.
Advising money managers, private equity, sovereign wealth funds, SPACs, among other parties on the impact of U.S. regulatory changes with respect to China.
Advising joint ventures on export control implications for formation and operation.
Counseling several global and U.S. companies with respect to supply chain and operational implications of U.S. regulatory changes with respect to China.
Counseling several multinational, Indian-based IT and professional service providers on export controls and sanctions compliance.
Securing a favorable outcome from BIS related to final regulations involving China on behalf of a large non-U.S. telecommunications provider.
Conducting global compliance gap assessments for manufacturing, professional services, cybersecurity, and software companies.