Sanctions Tracker – New UK Guidance Following Mints Decision On Ownership And Control

Our previous briefing commented on the recent Court of Appeal decision in Mints v PJSC National Bank Trust [2023] EWCA Civ 1132 and, particularly, the court's consideration of the "ownership and control" test under the UK sanctions regime. In summary, the court concluded that there was no carve-out to the ownership and control test for control exercised through political office and, accordingly, it could be said that Vladimir Putin (Russian President and a designated person) may be deemed to control "everything in Russia" for the purposes of the statutory instrument imposing the UK's Russian sanctions regime.

In an effort to resolve some of the uncertainty arising from this decision, the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (the "FCDO") has this week published a statement noting that it is "carefully considering" the impact of the Court of Appeal's decision. The statement goes on to say that the FCDO would look to designate a public body where possible when