Ukraine developments and Wolters Kluwer's response

August 1, 2022

Ukraine developments and Wolters Kluwer's response

The world has watched the invasion of Ukraine with growing horror and disbelief. Wolters Kluwer stands with Ukraine and the international community in condemning this unjustifiable aggression, which has created a humanitarian crisis in the heart of Europe.

We continue to support Ukraine and the region in many ways. The local teams in the directly affected region and the rest of our teams in Europe and around the world are offering a wide range of support including providing financial assistance, housing, supplies, clothing, equipment and workspace, and more.

Our teams in Health are providing ongoing customer access to UpToDate for healthcare providers in Ukraine and the region in need and participating in Research4Life, part of the WHO Hinari Programme, to provide access to journal content for Ukraine medical institutions. Legal & Regulatory is making legal research resources available to lawyers to help Ukrainian refugees.

Wolters Kluwer is also making substantial donations to aid organizations supporting refugees and others impacted by Russia’s invasion, including the Red Cross.

Career opportunities for candidates displaced by Ukrainian war

Wolters Kluwer stands in support of Ukraine and welcomes candidates who have been displaced by the war. We have career opportunities across a wide variety of technology roles, with centers in Poland and Romania along with other open positions throughout the EU, and will work with candidates to fast-track the recruitment process and provide support for the resettlement of them and their families as part of the onboarding process. Wolters Kluwer is a company that values the diversity of backgrounds and experiences of colleagues around the world.

Career opportunities for candidates displaced by the war in Ukraine.

Visit Careers at Wolters Kluwer to see available jobs.

Special reports from U.S. legal experts

To help businesses and legal professionals navigate this volatile and quickly evolving crisis, Wolters Kluwer legal experts have developed special reports covering the U.S. response.

“Unprecedented information warfare prior to the invasion put U.S. companies and their attorneys on notice that war was not only possible, but likely,” said Matthew Garza, Senior Legal Analyst at Wolters Kluwer Legal & Regulatory U.S. “This series of special reports will help them track the U.S. response as they continue to move to protect clients with interests in the region.”

The following special reports are available:

• Cybersecurity: As cyber threats increase with the ongoing invasion, experts continue to raise the alarm concerning potential cyberattacks against Ukrainian targets as well as attacks against the U.S. and other NATO countries. Recent federal cybersecurity action includes provisions in the Consolidated Appropriations Act that kicked off rulemaking to require reporting of ransomware payments and create a Cyber Incident Review Office within CISA. The SEC also proposed rules to enhance and standardize disclosure regarding cybersecurity risk management, strategy, governance, and incident reporting. 

• Intellectual Property: Several major IP offices around the world have halted cooperative efforts with their Russian counterparts. On the contrary, IP offices throughout Europe have pledged assistance and support to Ukrainian rights holders whose pending actions are disrupted by the conflict. The USPTO announced that it had terminated engagement with officials from Russia’s IP Agency (Rospatent), the Eurasian Patent Organization (EAPO) and the national IP office of Belarus, an action that will affect Russian rights holders seeking to extend protection to the U.S., as well as U.S. businesses that continue to operate in Russia. 

• The SEC: U.S. companies and private issuers subject to SEC disclosure regulations continue to monitor the crisis and prepare to potentially update existing SEC disclosures to reflect the risk of doing business in Russia and Ukraine countries. With reports that some diplomatic talks have occurred between Russia and Ukraine, businesses might begin to reconsider their decisions to cease business operations in Russia, but need to remain mindful that sanctions may not be lifted for some period of time after the conflict ends. 

• Sanctions and Compliance: Sanctions are being imposed at a rapid pace, and financial institutions and the attorneys counseling them are scrambling to navigate the regulations intended to ensure compliance with the sanctions and trade embargoes against Russia, hoping to prevent potential Russian sanction evasion attempts. Sanctions compliance and the prevention of actions taken as a back-door means to evade sanctions requires diligence, strict monitoring of OFAC’s SDN List, and the implantation of OFAC and FinCEN guidance, starting with an effective SCP that is wholly supported by management. 

• Economic Sanctions: Since the start of the invasion, President Biden has taken many executive actions that have led to a slew of economic sanctions against a wide swath of the Russian economy, its leadership, and oligarchy. The first action taken by OFAC was sanctioning two major Russian state-owned financial institutions, imposing additional restrictions on Russian sovereign debt, and sanctioning five Kremlin-connected elites. OFAC has also sanctioned additional regime elites and business executives who are associates and facilitators of the Russian regime. 

Free legal content for Ukrainian refugees in Germany

Wolters Kluwer is sharing its expert knowledge on social welfare benefits for Ukrainian refugees in Germany. Chief editor of Wolters Kluwer’s expert solution eGovPraxis Social Office, Prof. Dr. Peter Becker, provides an expert summary for local government workers – who are often the frontline employees to address requests for help – on what needs to be done and what to watch for. Wolters Kluwer in Germany is also providing a free information service for local government employees to easily follow legal developments to help keep them up to date. In addition, the business also offers on the news portal Legal Tribune Online a dedicated section on new developments - Ukraine Dossier -created by legal experts, including the Wolters Kluwer editorial team in Germany.