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Grant D. Leach

Grant D. Leach

Partner
Overview

Grant is a highly adaptive attorney who focuses on international trade, export controls, trade sanctions and anti-corruption compliance.

Grant has extensive experience helping clients navigate complex issues related to international commerce and its associated compliance challenges, including CFIUS. As part of his practice, Grant advises clients on requirements under the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), Export Administration Regulations (EAR) administered by the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) administered by the Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC), trade sanctions administered by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and other import- and export-related regulations.

Before joining Husch Blackwell, Grant worked for six years as in-house counsel for a diversified equipment manufacturer with extensive international operations. As a result, he has firsthand understanding of clients’ need for responsive and practical guidance when dealing with international trade compliance issues. Grant is particularly skilled at assisting clients to develop and maintain easy-to-administer compliance programs that avoid unnecessary disruption of business operations.

Grant also is a well-rounded transactional attorney. He represents lenders, borrowers and security issuers in financing transactions and assists clients in structuring and concluding all manner of corporate transactions, both domestically and internationally. Grant’s experience handling export compliance under State and Commerce Department regulations makes him adept at determining when transactions potentially involve “critical technologies” under recently-promulgated CFIUS regulations and he advises clients accordingly.

Industry

Services

Recognition

  • The Best Lawyers in America®, International Trade and Finance Law, 2024
  • Leadership Nebraska, Class IX
  • Omaha Magazine, Top Lawyer of Omaha, International Trade and Finance Law, 2021

Education

  • J.D., University of Nebraska College of Law
    • with high distinction
      • Nebraska Law Review 
      • Order of the Coif
  • B.S., Nebraska Wesleyan University
    • Accounting
    • with highest distinction

Admissions

  • Nebraska

Professional Memberships and Certifications

  • Midwest International Trade Association, Board of Directors
Experience
  • Negotiating supply contracts and advising clients on other legal matters associated with equipment supply and installation transactions exceeding $10 million in value in foreign markets such as Iraq, Egypt, Russia, Turkey and Rwanda.
  • Advising clients on international trade sanctions and Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) compliance.
  • Assisting clients to develop and administer Export-FCPA compliance programs.
  • Representing clients in proceedings with Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) and other regulatory bodies in connection with international trade.
  • Assisting clients with all legal aspects of managing their international dealer/distributor networks.
  • Representing lenders, borrowers and security issuers in variety of financing transactions.
  • Advising publicly traded companies on conducting their corporate governance in compliance with federal, NASDAQ and NYSE regulatory standards.
  • Structuring, negotiating and concluding all manners of day-to-day commercial transactions both domestically and internationally.
  • Frequently presenting on updates in international trade law for various professional associations.
  • Served on collaborative pro bono legal team for Set Aside Program. Legal Aid of Nebraska screened candidates and Husch Blackwell attorneys helped participants fill out documents to nullify criminal convictions, such as shoplifting, that would otherwise impact job searches and the ability to serve in the military.
  • Representing a U.S. company in the contemplated divesture of its semiconductor component testing business.
  • Advising on CFIUS implications for foreign investments into U.S. electricity generation projects.
  • Advising technology-focused startups on CFIUS restrictions related to accepting foreign investment.
  • Counseled a global financial reporting service on U.S. sanctions compliance in connection with a reporter's pending trip to Iran to cover an extremely urgent assignment, which entailed advising on authorized types of travel under pre-existing general licenses for journalistic activities and also confirming what electronic devices the reporter could and could not take with them into Iran under applicable U.S. export controls.
  • Counseled a leading biofuel producer and commodities trader on potential U.S. economic sanctions applicable to them as a result of their contemplated entry into a cross-border joint venture with a Mexican counterparty that was simultaneously engaged in ongoing transactions with the Cuban government. This work included performing sanctions diligence on the Mexican counterparty as well as advising the client on how to restrict its own operations and the joint venture's operations in order to avoid violating U.S. sanctions against Cuba.
  • Represented Chinese medical equipment company and its shareholders in its $40 million sale to a publicly listed U.S. company.
  • Guided hydrogen technologies company through two-stage Series Seed/A offering, securing $12.5 million investment from international investors.
White Papers | December 28, 2023
International Trade Law: 2023 Year in Review & Outlook for 2024

U.S. importers and exporters are navigating a new enforcement landscape where government officials are working collectively across agencies and increasingly leveraging new technologies.

White Papers | December 21, 2022
International Trade Law: 2022 Year in Review & Outlook for 2023

How to get trade ready in 2023.

White Papers | December 2021
International Trade Law: 2021 Year in Review & 2022 Outlook

How to get trade ready in 2022.

White Papers | December 2020
International Trade Law: 2020 Year in Review & 2021 Outlook

How to get trade ready in 2021.

White Papers | December 2019
International Trade Law: 2019 Year in Review & 2020 Outlook

How to get trade ready in 2020.

Outside the Office

Grant and his wife, Beth, spend most of their free time at various activities for their three children, Whitney, Abigail and Conrad. When he is not working or parenting, Grant enjoys watching professional wrestling, mixed martial arts, superhero movies and other various forms of scripted and unscripted human combat.

Community Leadership

Grant is passionate about developing international trade throughout Nebraska and the greater Midwest. He particularly enjoys helping start-up and midsize businesses expand their international operations. Grant is a member of the Midwest International Trade Association (“MITA”) Board of Directors and frequently presents on export and anti-corruption developments for a variety of organizations.