US law on armaments and defence

As soon as your products contain US technology, components of US origin or certain defence goods, the US export control regimes – the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) and the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) – apply, often even to shipments and end-uses outside the US. For the export of defence equipment manufactured in Germany with a US connection, these two sets of regulations are the key points of reference. Which rules apply depends on the origin, classification and end-use in each individual case, not on where your company is based.

We identify which regulations apply to your products and supply chains, and help you establish ITAR and EAR compliance frameworks tailored to the size of your business and your supply chain risk – from staff training to documentation.

Contracts with US authorities and the Department of Defence (DoD) are governed by their own procurement legislation: the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) and, for defence contracts, the Defence Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS). Both sets of regulations entail specific contractual clauses, reporting and documentation requirements with which German companies are generally unfamiliar under their own public procurement law – whether they enter into the contract directly or through a US partner.

We explain exactly what government contracting in the US means for your business and support you in drafting contracts in accordance with the FAR and DFARS – from the tender stage through to the ongoing performance of the contract.

If a US investor acquires a stake in your company, or if you yourself invest in a US company with security-related technology, a review by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) may be required. Whether a notification is required depends on the nature of the technology, the control structure of the transaction and the investor’s country of origin – not on the size of the deal.

We assist with assessing whether a CFIUS notification is required and with preparing the process – from the initial risk assessment through to coordination with the relevant authorities.

Collaborations with major US system integrators (Primes) are often conducted through teaming agreements – contracts with their own unique balance between competition and cooperation, which set out the division of roles, exclusivity and the allocation of intellectual property rights. Anyone reading these agreements from the perspective of German contract law can easily overlook just how much room for negotiation is contained within the individual clauses.

We review and negotiate teaming agreements with US prime contractors to ensure that roles, liability and intellectual property rights are clearly defined for your company – both before the agreement is signed and throughout the collaboration.