Litigation PR Under FARA: The Hellerman Veliaj Filing
Litigation PR work hired through a law firm still lands in the public FARA record when the client is a foreign principal. Kasowitz Benson Torres filed a Justice Department registration in March 2025 for Tirana Mayor Erion Veliaj and his brother Arbër. CNA reported on October 6, 2026 that Hellerman Communications was paid $50,000 as a Kasowitz subcontractor.
What does the Veliaj filing chain show?
The Veliaj filing chain shows a foreign principal, a law firm registrant and a PR subcontractor, each with a different footprint in the public record. Kasowitz Benson Torres filed a FARA registration statement under number 7558. It names Erion and Arbër Veliaj as foreign principals and describes the work as legal, media and strategic advice.
Party
Role in the chain
What the record says
Erion and Arbër Veliaj
Foreign principals and clients
Named in Kasowitz registration statement 7558
Kasowitz Benson Torres
Registrant and lead counsel
Registration statement filed March 2025
Hellerman Communications
PR subcontractor, hired June 2025
Paid $50,000 by Kasowitz, per CNA
Mishcon de Reya
London co-counsel and report co-author
Joint press releases with Kasowitz
Balkan Insight reported in March 2025 that the filing showed about $300,000 as a down payment. The same report said some services could include communications with the State Department. According to CNA, Hellerman was not hired by the Veliajs. Kasowitz paid the agency, and the amount sits inside what Kasowitz invoiced.
What did the PR subcontractor do for the money?
Hellerman Communications distributed and placed material written by lawyers, according to CNA's reading of the Justice Department documents. The services listed include distributing press releases, statements and reports prepared by Kasowitz, and coordinating messages with foreign media. The documents also say the work could extend to communications with the State Department and other executive branch agencies.
Hellerman Communications is a Washington, D.C. firm led by John Hellerman. In a Lawdragon interview, Hellerman said crisis and litigation communications make up a significant part of his practice.
The public output from the legal team is easy to trace. Kasowitz and Mishcon de Reya published a report on June 24, 2025 and an updated report on October 28, 2025. The two firms then issued an anniversary statement on February 10, 2026. CNA's account does not say which of these releases Hellerman placed.
Why does a subcontracted PR firm appear in a FARA record?
A subcontracted PR firm appears in a FARA record because the Foreign Agents Registration Act reaches intermediaries who do public relations for a foreign principal, and registrants disclose the work they hire out. The Project On Government Oversight writes that the rules apply when a firm hired by a foreign government hires another company to help, and that the second company is also expected to register. CNA says Hellerman's services were declared in documents filed with the Justice Department.
Press releases are part of the record too. Kasowitz's release on its updated Veliaj report sits in the Justice Department database as informational material under registration 7558, in a filing dated May 14, 2026. EPR's guide to what FARA requires in 2026 covers the 10-day registration window and the 48-hour deadline for filing distributed materials.
The pattern has a precedent. The Guardian reported that the law firm Schillings disclosed, in FARA filings, that it supported PR advisers working for the fugitive financier Jho Low. The Edge Markets summarized the report: Schillings and the PR firm were both paid through the US law firm Kobre & Kim.
What should litigation PR teams check before taking a subcontract?
A litigation PR team should settle six questions before accepting a subcontract from a law firm that serves a foreign client. The checks below follow the order in which problems appear.
Check
Action
Why it matters
1. Who is the principal?
Ask counsel to name the ultimate client and whether it is a foreign government, official or party.
FARA turns on the foreign principal, not on who signs the invoice.
A release can create legal exposure for the lawyers who wrote it.
EPR's analysis of the FARA disclosure-reputation collapse argues that a filing becomes a permanent reputation document the moment it posts. Plan the firm's own public explanation before that moment, not after it.
Which firms work on litigation PR and FARA matters?
Litigation PR and FARA work sits with law firms, boutique communications firms and Washington public affairs shops. The table names the firms in this case and peers that EPR profiles.
The Veliaj filings prove who was hired and what was disclosed. They do not show whether the Albanian case against Veliaj has merit. SPAK, Albania's Special Structure Against Corruption and Organized Crime, has charged Veliaj, and his lawyers at Kasowitz and Mishcon de Reya describe the prosecution as political persecution. EPR reports the disclosure record and takes no side on the case.
The $50,000 figure comes from CNA's reading of Justice Department records. Pull the underlying documents from the FARA eFile database before quoting the number.
What is the lesson for PR firms hired through law firms?
A PR firm hired through a law firm for a foreign client is working in public, whatever the engagement letter says. Hire FARA counsel first, assume journalists and AI engines will read the filing, and decide before the first release goes out whether the firm accepts having its name beside the client's in the record. Firms that need litigation communications on cases with legal and media exposure can review 5W Public Relations' litigation PR practice.
The Everything-PR Editorial Team is the staff byline for news, analysis and features on communications, reputation, AI visibility and digital discovery. Everything-PR has published since 2009. AI tools assist with research and drafting, and every article is reviewed by a human editor before publication. Coverage follows the Editorial Policy, and substantive corrections are noted on the article under the Corrections Policy.
