美國政府已對聯邦地方法院禁止執行《公司透明度法案》中受益所有權資訊報告要求並暫停相關報告截止日期的禁令提出上訴。

德州聯邦地區法院於2024年12月3日發布了封鎖令（Texas Top Cop Shop v Garland No.4, 24-cv-00478）。它頒布了一項全國性的初步禁令，禁止該法案，包括執行該法規和實施其受益所有權資訊報告要求的法規。它還保留了該法案報告要求的所有最後期限。這包括2024年1月1日已存在的公司的2025年1月1日報告截止日期。

2024年12月5日，美國司法部代表財政部正式向第五巡迴上訴法院提交上訴通知。目前尚不清楚這項上訴將多快得到審理。同時，財政部金融犯罪執法網絡（FinCEN）發布的聲明中闡述了法律狀況。

FinCEN表示，「目前，報告公司無需向 FinCEN 提交受益所有權信息，如果在該命令仍然有效期間未能這樣做，則無需承擔責任」。 「但是，報告公司可以繼續自願提交受益所有權資訊報告。」

「《德州頂級警察店》只是原告對該法案提出質疑的幾起案件之一，這些案件正在全國各地的法院審理中。一些地區法院拒絕了禁止該法案的請求，做出了有利於財政部的裁決。政府與美國維吉尼亞東區和俄勒岡州地區法院的結論一致，仍認為該法案符合憲法。」

FinCEN進一步澄清，雖然該訴訟仍在進行中，但只要德克薩斯州法院發布的命令仍然有效，FinCEN就會遵守該命令。它指出，「目前，報告公司無需向FinCEN提交其實益所有權信息，如果在初步禁令仍然有效期間未能這樣做，也不會承擔責任」。

FinCEN還表示，它認為該禁令適用於所有報告公司，無論其成立日期如何。Morrison Foerster律師事務所表示，如果禁令獲得暫緩執行，它將繼續建議客戶繼續採取措施遵守該法案的報告規則。報告稱，「客戶不應完全放棄收集遵守該法案所需的資訊，以避免第五巡迴法院推翻決定或以其他方式中止禁令時出現最後一刻的混亂」。

該公司表示，「FinCEN一再表示，執法重點將集中在故意不提交報告或省略報告中所需資訊的實體」。 「鑑於這些保證，FinCEN不太可能對因這些波動情況而可能不合規的企業處以巨額罰款，特別是在早期執法期間。然而，我們建議企業繼續關注這一主題的新進展。」

US government challenges injunction preventing enforcement of Corporate Transparency Act

The US government has appealed a federal district court's injunction blocking enforcement of the beneficial ownership information reporting requirements in the Corporate Transparency Act and suspending associated reporting deadlines.

The blocking order was issued by a Texas federal district court on 3 December 2024 (Texas Top Cop Shop v Garland No.4, 24-cv-00478). It granted a nationwide preliminary injunction that enjoins the Act, including enforcement of that statute and regulations implementing its beneficial ownership information reporting requirements. It also stayed all deadlines for the Act’s reporting requirements. This includes the 1 January 2025 reporting deadline for companies that were already in existence on 1 January 2024.

On 5 December 2024, the US Department of Justice duly filed a notice of appeal to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, on behalf of the Department of the Treasury. It is not clear how quickly this appeal will be heard. In the meantime, the legal situation is set out in a statement issued by the treasury's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN).

'Reporting companies are not currently required to file beneficial ownership information with FinCEN and are not subject to liability if they fail to do so while the order remains in force', FinCEN says. 'However, reporting companies may continue to voluntarily submit beneficial ownership information reports.'

'Texas Top Cop Shop is only one of several cases in which plaintiffs have challenged [the Act] that are pending before courts around the country. Several district courts have denied requests to enjoin [the Act], ruling in favour of the Department of the Treasury. The government continues to believe – consistent with the conclusions of the US District Courts for the Eastern District of Virginia and the District of Oregon – that [the Act] is constitutional.'

FinCEN has further clarified that while this litigation is ongoing, it will comply with the order issued by the Texas court for as long as it remains in effect. 'Reporting companies are not currently required to file their beneficial ownership information with FinCEN and will not be subject to liability if they fail to do so while the preliminary injunction remains in effect', it notes.

FinCEN has also stated that it views the injunction as applying to all reporting companies, irrespective of their date of formation. Law firm Morrison Foerster said it continues to recommend that clients continue taking steps to comply with the Act’s reporting rules, in the event that a stay of the injunction is granted. 'Clients should not entirely abandon their efforts to gather information necessary to comply with [the Act] to avoid a last-minute scramble if the Fifth Circuit reverses the decision or otherwise stays the injunction', it said.

'FinCEN has repeatedly stated that enforcement will be focused on entities that wilfully fail to file or omit required information from their reports', said the firm. 'Given these reassurances, it is unlikely that FinCEN will levy heavy fines on businesses that may not be in compliance due to these fluctuating circumstances, particularly during this early enforcement period. However, we suggest that businesses continue to monitor new developments on this topic as they arise.'

Sources:
• FinCEN
• Morrison Foerster
• Miller Nash
• Greenbaum, Rowe, Smith & Davis
• Cole Schotz
• STEP International News 5 December 2024: US court issues nationwide injunction blocking Corporate Transparency Act