Thread by @dsamuelsohn

Lobbyists are taking note of DOJ's recent uptick in enforcement of the Foreign Agents Registration Act. Between FY 16 & FY 19, new registrations more than doubled, jumping from almost 70 to 150, a Justice Department official said. ($) businessinsider.com/fara-foreign-a…

DOJ has also scrutinized whether registered foreign agents are adequately detailing their activities in regular disclosures. In those filings, registered foreign agents are required to list expenses & contacts w/ government officials, among other details of their advocacy.

As part of that effort, DOJ has stepped up inspections, in which officials scrutinize registered foreign agents' records to ensure they're fully disclosing their activities. During FY 19 DOJ conducted 20 such inspections, sometimes w/ the FBI present, per a DOJ official.

After having to pause inspections because of pandemic restrictions, the Justice Department began to conduct them virtually last year. The FARA unit is now on track this year to match the 20 inspections that were conducted in 2019, the Justice Department official said.

For the 1st time since 95, DOJ in 20 sent letters demanding foreign agents more fully detail influence activities or cease working for foreign clients. These deficiency notices give registered agents 10 days to address DOJ concerns or risk a civil lawsuit or criminal prosecution.

This year, DOJ's FARA unit brought in added resources to bolster its civil-enforcement authority. Of note: The unit added to its ranks Margaret Harker, a longtime asst US attorney who specialized in civil litigation during stints in the US prosecutors' offices in Va and Tenn.

The FARA unit is housed within DOJ's national security division, which has broadly been adding trial attorneys. But Harker is assigned specifically to the FARA unit, which signals the DOJ's increased willingness to bring civil lawsuits to force new foreign-agent registrations.

With the addition of Harker, the FARA unit now includes five full-time lawyers — an increase from the three it had in 2018, a Justice Department official said. The 12-person unit also includes a detailee, analysts and support staff.

"They have augmented the attorney bench in the FARA unit with an experienced prosecutor," said David Laufman, a partner at Wiggin and Dana who previously oversaw FARA enforcement as a top official in the Justice Department's national security division.

Referring to the FARA unit's civil authority, Laufman added, "It wouldn't surprise me to see the Justice Department, in the right case, take that gun off the mantelpiece again."

DOJ may soon have such a case. The @WSJ reported in May DOJ was eyeing casino mogul & GOP donor Steve Wynn to compel him to register as a foreign agent in connection w/ his 17 effort to persuade US officials to send Guo Wengui, a Chinese businessman living in NY back to China.

Lots more in this @cryanbarber deep dive that's well worth a @thisisinsider subscription. Click here to sign up: businessinsider.com/fara-foreign-a…