The U.K. is investigating David Crisp, the manager of a luxury perfume brand, for allegedly exporting perfume to Russia in violation of U.K. sanctions, according to a civil judgment released this month by the U.K. High Court of Justice.

The U.K. must reassess whether it should investigate cotton imports from China suspected of being made with forced labor after an appellate court ruled last month that the country’s National Crime Agency wrongly decided against opening the probe.

The EU on July 3 declined to extend the protections in the Energy Charter Treaty -- a trade and investment deal for the energy sector -- to investments and investors from Russia and Belarus in order to boost its sanctions enforcement efforts, the European Commission announced. While neither Russia nor Belarus is a party to the Energy Charter Treaty, investors from these countries could theoretically use corporations set up in a signatory country to allege that the EU or its member states have violated "investment protection obligations" of the ECT and bring investor-state dispute settlement proceedings, the commission said. The EU's move eliminates the basis for making any such claim.

The EU General Court in a pair of decisions on June 26 annulled the sanctions listings of Russian businessman Dmitry Alexandrovich Pumpyanskiy and his wife, Galina Evgenyevna Pumpyanskaya. Pumpyanskiy was listed for supporting the Russian government and acting as a "leading businessperson operating in Russia" providing a "substantial source of revenue to the Government of Russia." He formerly served as chairman of Pipe Metalurgic Company (TMK) and president of investment firm Group Sinara, while his wife was listed solely for her link to the businessman. The court said the European Council can't rely on those listing criteria to maintain Pumpyanskiy's sanctions designation given that he no longer holds those positions at TMK or Group Sinara. Pumpyanskaya was removed because the sole basis of her designation was severed following her husband's successful appeal.

The EU General Court on June 19 rejected Russian businessperson Igor Rotenberg's bid to be removed from the EU's Russian sanctions list. Rotenberg was sanctioned for holding leadership positions in Russian companies SGM, Gazprom Drilling and Mostotrest and for his association with his father, oligarch Arkady Rotenberg, and with President Vladimir Putin.

The Supreme Court of the Netherlands last week sustained the conviction of a person (name redacted) for violating the nation's sanctions laws, according to an unofficial translation. The court found that the accused's transfer of money to the person's brother, who's a fighter for ISIS in Syria, amounted to the transfer of funds to a terrorist organization, in violation of Dutch sanctions laws.

The EU opened a dispute settlement proceeding against Algeria under the two sides' Association Agreement to "address several restrictions" on EU exports and investments, the European Commission's Directorate-General for Trade announced. Algeria imposed various trade restrictions on the EU in 2021, covering multiple sectors, including agriculture and motor vehicles.

The EU General Court on June 12 rejected Russian investment fund VEB.RF's application to be removed from the bloc's Russia sanctions regime, according to an unofficial translation. The European Council sanctioned the financial institution for helping undermine the territorial sovereignty of Ukraine and providing material support to "Russian decision-makers responsible for the annexation of Crimea or the destabilization of Eastern Ukraine."

The EU General Court on June 12 rejected Syrian businessman Issam Shammout's challenge to his designation under the bloc's Syria sanctions regime. Shammout, an executive for airline company Cham Wings Airlines and the Shammout Group, was sanctioned due to his position as a "leading businessperson operating in Syria."

The EU General Court on May 29 dismissed a suit from Belarusian Airlines AAT challenging the validity of its 2021 sanctions designation.