LetterOne Loses 1st Security Act Challenge On Forced Sale

Ross Evans’ commentary was included in Law360’s recent article on a UK High Court order rejecting a complaint from LetterOne, an investment group backed by Russian oligarchs, after the UK government forced it to sell a regional broadband provider — in the first legal challenge to a decision under the National Security and Investment Act 2021.

Ross said that the “rejection of the appeal would indicate that the mere potential for indirect owners to influence the behavior and cybersecurity practices of a target involved in telecommunications infrastructure ... was a legitimate consideration that the secretary of state could take into account when weighing the likelihood of whether a risk to national security would arise.”