1
00:00:00,040 --> 00:00:02,920
Speaker 1: Now it's time for our daily Bloomberg Law Brief, exploring

2
00:00:03,000 --> 00:00:05,800
Speaker 1: legal issues in the news. Today, Bloomberg LA host Greg

3
00:00:05,880 --> 00:00:09,879
Speaker 1: Store and Michael Best discuss potential legal charges against former

4
00:00:10,000 --> 00:00:14,000
Speaker 1: National Security advisor Michael Flynn for not fully disclosing his

5
00:00:14,080 --> 00:00:17,360
Speaker 1: business dealings with Russia. They speak with William Banks, director

6
00:00:17,360 --> 00:00:20,760
Speaker 1: of the Institute for National Security and counter Terrorism at

7
00:00:20,800 --> 00:00:25,639
Speaker 1: Syracuse University Law School. Bill. Based on what Chaefitts and

8
00:00:25,680 --> 00:00:29,640
Speaker 1: Cummings have said after their review of documents, what legal

9
00:00:29,680 --> 00:00:35,280
Speaker 1: problems does Michael Flynn face here? He faces a few,

10
00:00:35,520 --> 00:00:41,040
Speaker 1: I think you know. The The most clear violation appears

11
00:00:41,080 --> 00:00:44,680
Speaker 1: to be of a statute called the Foreign Agents Registration Act,

12
00:00:44,760 --> 00:00:49,720
Speaker 1: which is its name. Applause implies indicates that someone who's

13
00:00:49,760 --> 00:00:52,640
Speaker 1: going to be working uh in a foreign state on

14
00:00:52,720 --> 00:00:56,920
Speaker 1: behalf of their government must register here in the United States,

15
00:00:57,560 --> 00:01:01,480
Speaker 1: the idea idea being, of course, so that we can

16
00:01:01,600 --> 00:01:05,160
Speaker 1: know wherefore an influence in the United States might be

17
00:01:05,200 --> 00:01:09,480
Speaker 1: coming from. The form suggests that he did not register,

18
00:01:09,600 --> 00:01:12,199
Speaker 1: at least at the time he was doing that work

19
00:01:12,280 --> 00:01:15,880
Speaker 1: in Russia or for a European country with ties to

20
00:01:15,959 --> 00:01:19,200
Speaker 1: Turkey and also ties to Russia. And Bill, what would

21
00:01:19,200 --> 00:01:21,960
Speaker 1: be the practical implications, is that possible he could face

22
00:01:22,000 --> 00:01:26,080
Speaker 1: criminal charges if indeed he violated that law. It is

23
00:01:26,160 --> 00:01:30,080
Speaker 1: although that the statute does impose a pretty high barrier

24
00:01:30,240 --> 00:01:35,080
Speaker 1: to that, because the the conduct that he must have

25
00:01:36,080 --> 00:01:39,039
Speaker 1: engaged in, that is, failing to register, has to have

26
00:01:39,200 --> 00:01:43,000
Speaker 1: been wilful. So, you know, a simple uh, you know,

27
00:01:43,800 --> 00:01:47,920
Speaker 1: I forgot is not enough to convict him. But a

28
00:01:48,000 --> 00:01:52,080
Speaker 1: failure to register or making a false statement or or

29
00:01:52,120 --> 00:01:55,600
Speaker 1: an omission of a material fact in connection with registration

30
00:01:55,720 --> 00:01:59,560
Speaker 1: is also unlawful. Again if it was willfully done, and

31
00:01:59,640 --> 00:02:02,480
Speaker 1: if it was willfully done, he could face either civil

32
00:02:02,600 --> 00:02:05,960
Speaker 1: or criminal penalties. Bill there's also a question whether he

33
00:02:06,040 --> 00:02:09,080
Speaker 1: might have violated the Constitutions of Monuments clause. Can you

34
00:02:09,200 --> 00:02:11,240
Speaker 1: you talk about that? Do you see that as a

35
00:02:11,280 --> 00:02:15,560
Speaker 1: potential serious issue for him? It's uh, you know, in theory,

36
00:02:15,639 --> 00:02:18,160
Speaker 1: it's the same. It is a serious issue in the

37
00:02:18,200 --> 00:02:20,520
Speaker 1: same way that it has been when it's come up

38
00:02:20,520 --> 00:02:24,120
Speaker 1: with regard to Mr Trump and members of Mr Trump's

39
00:02:24,160 --> 00:02:29,440
Speaker 1: family benefiting personally from their their investments while serving as

40
00:02:29,480 --> 00:02:33,960
Speaker 1: a public official. As a practical matter, it's unlikely to

41
00:02:34,040 --> 00:02:38,600
Speaker 1: have serious implications for Mr Flynn, and it's William Banks,

42
00:02:38,639 --> 00:02:42,160
Speaker 1: director of the Institute for National Security and counter Terrorism

43
00:02:42,200 --> 00:02:45,680
Speaker 1: at Syracuse University Law School, speaking with Bloomberg Law host

44
00:02:45,720 --> 00:02:48,520
Speaker 1: Greg Sture and Michael Best. You can listen to Bloomberg

45
00:02:48,560 --> 00:02:51,360
Speaker 1: Law weekdays at one pm Wall Street Time here on

46
00:02:51,440 --> 00:02:54,799
Speaker 1: Bloomberg Radio Now. Among the top legal stories from Bloomberg Law,

47
00:02:54,960 --> 00:02:57,880
Speaker 1: former Jefferies Trader has been jailed for two years and

48
00:02:57,919 --> 00:03:01,120
Speaker 1: find two million dollars for law to a customer about

49
00:03:01,160 --> 00:03:04,200
Speaker 1: bond prices. Jesse Ledvac was found guilty at a trial

50
00:03:04,240 --> 00:03:07,640
Speaker 1: in January after his first conviction was reversed on appeal.

51
00:03:07,919 --> 00:03:11,320
Speaker 1: Led Vac's arrest in mark the start of a crackdown

52
00:03:11,360 --> 00:03:14,600
Speaker 1: on shady sales practices in the world of mortgage backed securities.

53
00:03:15,200 --> 00:03:18,720
Speaker 1: Two Native American tribes say that oil tankers are threatening

54
00:03:18,760 --> 00:03:23,040
Speaker 1: already endangered killer whales. They filed student Seattle. The complaint

55
00:03:23,040 --> 00:03:25,600
Speaker 1: claims the Coast Guard hasn't done enough to ensure the

56
00:03:25,600 --> 00:03:29,240
Speaker 1: black and white whales known as orcas won't be decimated

57
00:03:29,240 --> 00:03:33,320
Speaker 1: by increased shipping traffic or oil spills. Tanker traffic will

58
00:03:33,440 --> 00:03:35,960
Speaker 1: increase in the region because of an expansion of the

59
00:03:36,160 --> 00:03:39,680
Speaker 1: Trans Mountain Pipeline, and that's this morning's Bloomberg Law Brie.

60
00:03:39,680 --> 00:03:41,880
Speaker 1: If you can find more legal news at Bloomberg law

61
00:03:42,000 --> 00:03:45,600
Speaker 1: dot com and Bloomberg b NA dot com. Attorneys will

62
00:03:45,600 --> 00:03:48,560
Speaker 1: find exceptional legal research and business development tools there as well.

63
00:03:48,760 --> 00:03:51,600
Speaker 1: Visit Bloomberg law dot com and Bloomberg BNA dot com

64
00:03:51,640 --> 00:03:52,480
Speaker 1: for more information