Covington & Burling LLP operates as a limited liability partnership worldwide, with the practice in England and Wales conducted by an affiliated
limited liability multinational partnership, Covington & Burling LLP, which is formed under the laws of the State of Delaware in the United States
and authorized and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority with registration number 77071..
Covington has a preeminent practice advising clients on reviews before the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) and related national security processes. We are the firm that has secured three of the four Presidential approvals in the history of CFIUS, and have been widely recognized for our leadership in the field. We routinely are called upon for the highest profile and most complicated matters.
Our CFIUS practice is a broad-gauged national security practice that includes work at the leading edge of related processes. Our team includes lawyers and advisors who are at the forefront of the matters involving foreign ownership, control or influence (FOCI) over government contractors, devised and have been deeply involved in the implementation of the Data Security Program rules administered by the U.S. Department of Justice and the national security regulations governing Information and Communication Technologies and Services administered by the U.S. Department of Commerce, and served on and supervised the so-called “Team Telecom” committee related to license transfers and authorizations before the FCC. We also routinely advise on the Outbound Investment Review program administered by the U.S. Department of the Treasury.
We help clients assess the applicability and risks associated with CFIUS and these related processes, plan for and execute on strategic transactions, secure regulatory approvals, negotiate mitigation arrangements, and manage compliance obligations under national security agreements.
Our team has represented every type of global investor and transaction party on CFIUS and related national security matters, including public and private companies, private equity and investment firms, state-owned enterprises, sovereign wealth funds, founders, and boards. Under both Democratic and Republican administrations, we have handled more than $700+ billion in transactions spanning practically every sector subject to CFIUS review, including aerospace and defense; agriculture; artificial intelligence; autonomous vehicles; biotechnology and pharmaceuticals; critical minerals; data centers and cloud infrastructure; energy; financial services and insurance; information and communications technologies and services; manufacturing, chemicals, and industrial; pharmaceuticals and biotechnology; ports; semiconductors; software; telecommunications; and transportation systems. These transactions include many of the most sensitive and complex cases that have set the template for CFIUS reviews.
Our team of more than 20 lawyers and advisors—the largest CFIUS practice of any firm—includes former Cabinet and sub-Cabinet level officials from virtually every CFIUS member agency, including Treasury, State, Commerce, Energy, Homeland Security, Defense, Justice, and USTR. This expertise—coupled with the breadth and diversity of the transactions we handle—puts us on the leading edge of every type of CFIUS matter. We anticipate and react to trends as well as help shape CFIUS’s approach to the issues that matter most to our clients.
Clients turn to Covington for matters where the legal, policy, political, and commercial stakes are highest. We bring decades of experience handling the hardest and most complex cases before CFIUS and related national security bodies. We have deep familiarity with interagency decision-making and a practical approach to preserving transaction value.
Beyond the United States, our CFIUS lawyers regularly work with the firm’s dedicated Foreign Direct Investment Regulation team in our Europe and Asia offices to advise on the foreign investment rules and regulations that are shaping the landscape for foreign direct investment around the world.
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