Senate Advances Padilla, Cornyn Bill to Protect Americans From Russian Litigation
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senators Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) and John Cornyn (R-Texas) announced that the Senate Judiciary Committee advanced their Protecting Americans from Russian Litigation Act. The bipartisan legislation would protect American companies that have been unfairly targeted in foreign jurisdictions, particularly Russian courts, for their good faith compliance with U.S. sanctions and export controls following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“As Putin continues his war on Ukraine, we cannot let Russia exploit American courts for retaliatory lawsuits against companies complying with U.S. sanctions and export controls,” said Senator Padilla. “Whether it’s Russia today or another foreign adversary tomorrow, shielding American companies from legal harassment at home and abroad is a commonsense, bipartisan priority that defends our national security and protects the effectiveness of our sanctions regime. Today’s committee passage is an important first step, and I will keep working with Senator Cornyn to ensure this fix becomes law.”
“American companies who rightfully stopped doing business in Russia following Putin’s invasion of Ukraine should not be punished or subjected to Russian lawfare,” said Senator Cornyn. “This legislation would close a legal loophole that has been abused by Russian courts to unfairly target American businesses for complying with U.S. sanctions meant to weaken Putin’s war regime and ensure our corporations are not held liable for Russia’s actions.”
In response to Russia’s February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, the United States imposed sanctions and export controls on Russia. Acting in good faith, U.S. companies wound down their operations and ceased work in Russia to comply with these measures. As a result, numerous suits have been brought against U.S. companies in Russian courts, with some facing hundreds of millions of dollars in potential damages. Russia has sought to enforce these judgments in other jurisdictions.
American businesses should not be punished for complying with U.S. sanctions and export controls. This legislation protects American businesses by ensuring that such retaliatory judgments cannot be enforced against them in U.S. courts.
The House Judiciary Committee also advanced companion legislation today, further highlighting the importance of this bipartisan, bicameral legislation.
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