Hunter Biden-Linked Law Firm Registers as Foreign Agent

A leading law firm connected to Ukrainian energy company Burisma, which Hunter Biden was once a board member of, has finally registered as a foreign agent, eight years later.

This retroactive filing came after the law firm Cravath, Swain & Moore discussed the scope of the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) with the Justice Department. This information was confirmed in a statement that the firm emailed to Politico.

While it is unusual for foreign agents to register years after completing their work, there have been several cases in recent years, particularly as foreign lobbying efforts have had an impact on political controversies. The Justice Department has also shown renewed interest in enforcement.

According to the filing, in 2016, Cravath partner John Buretta met with three Obama administration officials and sent a letter to a fourth as part of his work for Burisma and company owner Mykola Zlochevsky. They were under scrutiny at the time from U.S., Ukrainian and United Kingdom officials for possible corruption.

The FARA filing does not mention Hunter Biden.

Investigations in the U.K. and Ukraine did not result in any charges, but the impact of this episode on U.S. politics has been ongoing.

When then-U.S. Vice President Joe Biden was overseeing U.S. policy in Ukraine, his son Hunter Biden was serving on Burisma’s board. In 2016, as the federal government was pushing for reform in Ukraine, Joe Biden pushed for the firing of the country’s top prosecutor, threatening to withhold U.S. aid unless he was ousted.

Allies of former President Donald Trump have claimed that Joe Biden sought the firing of prosecutor Viktor Shokin to help Burisma evade corruption charges. However, U.S. officials involved in Ukraine matters at the time stated that the termination was due to Shokin’s unwillingness to investigate corruption allegations.

President Donald Trump was impeached by the Democrat-controlled House in 2019 for asking the Ukrainian government to investigate the Biden family regarding this matter. He was ultimately acquitted by the Senate, which was in Republican hands at the time.

House Republicans initiated an impeachment inquiry into Joe Biden over his family’s foreign business dealings, alleging his involvement in an elaborate influence-peddling scheme.

In December, special counsel David Weiss indicted Hunter Biden on charges including failure to pay taxes on income from Burisma. He has pleaded not guilty.

Cravath is not the only company to register as a foreign agent after the fact. According to Politico, Democrat lobbying firm Blue Star Strategies registered as a foreign agent of Burisma’s and Zlochevsky’s in 2022 for its efforts to block corruption investigations. The Justice Department probed Blue Star’s work for Burisma, but closed the investigation with no findings of malfeasance.