This Memorial Day marks 35 years since Jim Henson, creator of the Muppets, passed away. Among his many accomplishments, the Muppets were essential to the creation of the longest-running children’s television show, “Sesame...more
As detailed in Part I of our three-part series on Minimizing Customs Enforcement and False Claims Act Risks, the combination of the new high-tariff environment, the heightened ability of Customs (and the general public) to...more
4/25/2025
/ Anti-Dumping Duty ,
Classification ,
Compliance ,
Countervailing Duties ,
Country of Origin ,
Customs and Border Protection ,
Duty Free ,
Enforcement Actions ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Free Trade Agreements ,
Imports ,
International Trade ,
Misclassification ,
Misrepresentation ,
Penalties ,
Risk Management ,
Tariffs ,
Valuation
So, just before Easter, in 1957, a little book you may have heard of, called The Cat in the Hat, made its first appearance. Theodore Geisel — writing under the name “Dr. Suess” — later said that of all his children’s books,...more
4/18/2025
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Bribery ,
Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Governance ,
Ethics ,
Export Controls ,
Internal Controls ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Risk Management ,
Sanctions
On April 2, 2025, President Trump implemented the steepest American tariffs in over a century. The implications for numerous multinational companies — including importers, manufacturers, distributors, and retailers — will be...more
4/4/2025
/ Anti-Dumping Duty ,
Automotive Industry ,
China ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Countervailing Duties ,
Country of Origin ,
Customs and Border Protection ,
Distributors ,
Imports ,
International Trade ,
Manufacturers ,
Multinationals ,
Retailers ,
Supply Chain ,
Tariffs ,
Trump Administration ,
United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) ,
US Trade Policies
On February 20, 2025, the Deputy Assistant Attorney General for the Commercial Litigation Branch at the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), Michael Granston, emphasized using the False Claims Act (FCA) to address U.S. Customs &...more
3/7/2025
/ Compliance ,
Customs and Border Protection ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Globally Harmonized System ,
Imports ,
International Trade ,
Misclassification ,
Section 301 ,
Supply Chain ,
Tariffs ,
Trump Administration ,
US Enforce and Protect Act (EAPA) ,
Whistleblowers
Mexican cartels dominate large swaths of the Mexico-United States border and the Bajío region (an area encompassing relevant parts of Queretaro, Guanajuato, Aguascalientes, San Luis Potosí, Jalisco, and Michoacán), and they...more
3/7/2025
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Compliance ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Investment ,
International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) ,
National Security ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Risk Assessment ,
Risk Management ,
Supply Chain
As reported in our prior article, “What Every Multinational Company Should Know About … The New Steel and Aluminum Tariffs (Part I),” President Trump signed two proclamations on February 10, 2025, imposing 25-percent tariffs...more
2/26/2025
/ Compliance ,
Customs and Border Protection ,
Imports ,
International Trade ,
Risk Management ,
Section 232 ,
Steel Industry ,
Supply Chain ,
Tariffs ,
Trump Administration ,
U.S. Commerce Department
As an accompaniment to our “What Every Multinational Should Know” biweekly series, below find an update to our “Five Compliance Best Practices” series, which provides quick-hit advice for multinational companies to implement...more
As Trump seeks to raise U.S. tariffs (which currently tend to be among the lowest worldwide), manufacturers, distributors, retailers, and other companies that frequently import (“importers”) must determine the best strategy...more
2/18/2025
/ China ,
Compliance ,
Customs and Border Protection ,
Forced Labor ,
Human Trafficking ,
Imports ,
Risk Management ,
Supply Chain ,
Tariffs ,
Trade Wars ,
Trump Administration ,
US Trade Policies ,
Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA)
Everyone knows — or should know — that “The Terminator” is the best Halloween movie release and that “Die Hard” is the best Christmas movie (even though it was released in July). But while it’s hard to come up with a best...more
On February 10 President Trump issued an Executive Order, Pausing Foreign Corrupt Practices Act Enforcement to Further American Economic and National Security, signaling a shift in U.S. enforcement priorities regarding...more
As an accompaniment to our biweekly series on “What Every Multinational Company Should Know About” various international trade, enforcement, and compliance topics, below find an update to our series on compliance checks that...more
1/24/2025
/ Compliance ,
Customs ,
Customs and Border Protection ,
Cybersecurity ,
Forced Labor ,
Human Rights ,
International Trade ,
Labor Regulations ,
National Security ,
Risk Management ,
Supply Chain
The U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) has promulgated a Final Rule prohibiting the import and sale of connected vehicles and related components linked to the People’s Republic of China (PRC)...more
1/16/2025
/ Automation Systems ,
Automotive Industry ,
Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
China ,
Compliance ,
Cybersecurity ,
Final Rules ,
National Security ,
OEM ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Russia ,
Supply Chain ,
Transparency ,
U.S. Commerce Department
The expected focus on tariffs and supply chain issues by the Trump administration presents significant risks for frequent importers. Determining the best strategy to deal with potential import uncertainties are muddled by...more
1/9/2025
/ Anti-Dumping Duty ,
China ,
Compliance ,
Countervailing Duties ,
Customs and Border Protection ,
Free Trade Zone ,
Government Agencies ,
Section 301 ,
Supply Chain ,
Tariffs ,
Trade Relations ,
Trump Administration ,
United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) ,
Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA)
So, a lot of readers — well, a couple of people . . . okay, one person, and it might have been my mom — have asked for a third Christmas compliance parody article. And since we are nothing but compliant (sorry, we couldn’t...more
12/19/2024
/ Audits ,
Chief Compliance Officers ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Culture ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Data Breach ,
Enforcement ,
Ethics ,
Fraud ,
Investigations ,
Training
So, for those of you who missed last year’s “The Grinch Who Stole Compliance,” never fear: We have an endless supply of compliance-related holiday mirth. After all, who doesn’t like a bit of eggnog and the traditional singing...more
The U.S. government has increasingly emphasized the importance of supply chain integrity, particularly in relation to eliminating forced labor. U.S. policymakers are actively passing legislation, including the Uyghur Forced...more
12/5/2024
/ Automotive Industry ,
China ,
Compliance ,
Customs and Border Protection ,
Due Diligence ,
Forced Labor ,
Human Trafficking ,
Multinationals ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Supply Chain ,
Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA)
As an accompaniment to our biweekly series on “What Every Multinational Company Should Know About” various international trade, enforcement, and compliance topics, below find an update to our series on compliance checks that...more
Regulators around the world are sending a consistent message to companies that operate or source internationally, which is that they must take ownership of their supply chains. In addition, multinational companies face...more
11/21/2024
/ Compliance ,
Due Diligence ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Ethics ,
Forced Labor ,
Human Trafficking ,
Investors ,
Multinationals ,
Penalties ,
Reputational Injury ,
Risk Management ,
Slavery ,
Supply Chain
As an accompaniment to our biweekly series on “What Every Multinational Company Should Know About” various international trade, enforcement, and compliance topics, below find an update to our series on compliance checks that...more
As an accompaniment to our biweekly series on What Every Multinational Should Know About various international trade, enforcement, and compliance topics, below find an update to our “Five Compliance Best Practices” series,...more
Ah, Halloween. The one day of the year where we celebrate non-compliance by masked, under-age workers. And as our long-time readers know — and if you are not, you know who you are and need to hang your head in shame — it...more
We have received requests to publish a comprehensive set of Customs and import compliance best practices that covers all aspects of importation and supply chain management. As part of this series, the topic this week is best...more
10/24/2024
/ Brokers ,
Compliance ,
Customs ,
Documentation ,
Duties ,
Fraud ,
Freight Forwarding ,
Importers ,
Multinationals ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Risk Management ,
Supply Chain
As an accompaniment to our biweekly series on “What Every Multinational Company Should Know About” various international trade, enforcement, and compliance topics, below find an update to our series on compliance checks that...more
Share on Twitter Print Share by Email Share Back to top On September 26, 2024, the Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that, if finalized, would prohibit...more
10/11/2024
/ Automotive Industry ,
Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
China ,
Compliance ,
Data Collection ,
Driverless Cars ,
Due Diligence ,
Export Controls ,
Foreign Adversaries ,
Hardware ,
International Trade ,
Proposed Rules ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Russia ,
Software ,
Supply Chain ,
Vulnerability Assessments