"US Beneficial Ownership Database Approaches Legal Hurdle," MoneyLaundering.com

In a recent interview with MoneyLaundering.com, partner Jonathan Wilson provided insight into a business group’s legal challenge against the Corporate Transparency Act, or CTA. While the suit faces an uphill battle in court, sources told ACAMS moneylaundering.com that publicity surrounding the federal lawsuit may delay the development of the ownership registry mandated by the law.

"The legal challenge has a small chance of delaying implementation by casting doubt over the legitimacy of certain elements of the CTA, but is unlikely to prevail on its constitutional merits," said Wilson. “We have to identify ourselves to governments all the time,” he added.

Congress passed the CTA in January 2021, directing Treasury to begin compiling the names, addresses and other information of individuals who holds at least a 25 percent stake in a limited partnership, limited liability company or other legal entity in the U.S., and make the data available to law enforcement with the goal of combating kleptocracy and other illicit finance.

The complaint advances several arguments against the CTA, claiming that the law infringes on the authority of state governments to regulate commerce and violates the Fourth Amendment by exposing business owners subject to the declaration requirements to unreasonable searches and seizures without probable cause.

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Wilson is also the Co-Founder of the FinCEN Report Company, a cloud-based software solution for filing CTA reports.