On November 18, federal judge John D. Bates of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia dismissed a lawsuit against Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman (MBS) for the murder of Washington Post reporter Jamal Khashoggi, citing head of state immunity.  The suit was brought forth by Khashoggi’s widow, and a non-profit organization he helped found, seeking relief under the Torture Victim Protection Act (TVPA) and the Alien Tort Statute (ATS). 

The Council of Europe’s (CoE) European Committee on Crime Problems (CDPC) held its 82^nd plenary session on November 28-30, 2022.^[1]

On December 7, 2022, United States law enforcement announced the unsealing of a seven-count indictment in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York, charging Andrii Derkach, 55, of Ukraine, with conspiracy to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), bank fraud conspiracy, money laundering conspiracy, and four counts of money laundering in connection with the purchase and maintenance of two condominiums in Beverly Hills, California.  The indictment alleges Derkach hid his interest in the transactions and violated sanctions imposed in 2020.  Derkach is at large.  The charges and forfeiture action are the first use of criminal and forfeiture powers targeting the concealment of ownership by senior foreign political officials, enacted as part of the National Defense Authorization Act of 2021.[1]

On December 7, 2022, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) released its report on killings of civilians, encompassing both summary executions and attacks on individual civilians, committed in parts of Kyiv, Chernihiv, and Sumy regions of Ukraine between February 24 and April 6, 2022.[1]

On December 14, 2022, Europol and the United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) issued a joint analysis report shedding light on the involvement of Mexican criminal actors in the EU drug market.

On December 15, 2022, the European Parliament adopted a much awaited resolution, which is a swift reaction and a follow-up to serious allegations of corruption involving some top officials at this body. This seems to be a jump-start towards broader and far-reaching reforms in the area of transparency and accountability in the European institutions.

On December 8, 2022, the Grand Chamber of the  Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) held in the case of the Flemish Bar Association and others v. Belgium, C-694/20 (CJEU 2020) that the European Union directive on administrative cooperation  that requires attorneys serving as intermediaries in cross-border tax planning arrangements to notify other intermediaries of their reporting obligation (commonly known as DAC6) violates article 7 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU concerning the right to legal professional privilege.  The Court issued a press release summarizing its judgment.

On November 28, 2022, authors of “Taxing Crime: A Whole of Government Approach to Fighting Corruption, Money Laundering and Tax Crime” participated in a webinar moderated by Jeffrey Owens, discussing the new book.

On November 15, the Georgetown Law Center for National Security (CNS) announced that they were selected by the U.S., EU, and United Kingdom to lead and coordinate the Atrocity Crimes Advisory Group (ACA), an operational hub responsible for coordinating technical and legal assistance for the government of Ukraine in enacting war crimes accountability for the Russo-Ukraine conflict.  The U.S. State Department gave the CNS an initial grant of $10 million and the project will be led by CNS Director Anna Cave and Ambassador Clint Williamson,[1] who has been leading the ACA since its inception in May.[2]

On November 22, 2022, the Grand Chambers of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) issued a judgment declaring that the European Union anti-money-laundering directive,[1] as adopted by a Luxembourg law in 2019, establishing a Register of Beneficial Ownership,  with some of the information accessible to the general public, is invalid.  The Luxembourg law makes information accessible on at least the name, the month and year of birth, the nationality and country of residence of the beneficial owner, as well as the nature and to extent of the beneficial interest held.