Imagine yourself as the General Counsel for a mid-size U.S. corporation. The company has five locations, all in the U.S.; around a thousand U.S.-based employees; and uses a local company to store its data which is, again, all in the U.S. Two years ago, your company, unbeknownst to you engaged in a small business deal in Brazil. Other than this one deal, the company has never had any contact with Brazil, its government, or any Brazilian companies. Then one day you receive a phone call from the head of one of your business units. She has heard from the media that the Brazilian Government is investigating your company. She confirms that you have no employees, facilities, documents, or data in Brazil but mentions a small deal done two years ago. You wonder what is next.
Using a little known tool called Mutual Legal Assistance Treaties (“MLAT”) law enforcement around the world can access evidence in foreign countries. MLATs are bi-lateral agreements that allow prosecutors from one country to submit a Mutual Legal Assistance Request (“MLA Request”) that binds the other country’s law enforcement to assist with an investigation. A request from another country (“incoming request”) draws on the subpoena and warrant power of the U.S. Government to obtain documents, testimony, physical evidence, and data for use in criminal investigations.
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