Is Trade Compliance the Lone Ranger?  There are companies, surely not yours, where various departments are viewed as spokes around the hub of the trade compliance department. Each department operates as if trade compliance is accomplished “out there somewhere” rather than taking an active part in making sure the company meets its import and/or export [...]

Where Is Brexit? What Is Brexit?  Over time, the UK has given us many interesting tales – from Camelot to Hogwarts. But there hasn’t been a more mystical story from the UK in decades as the tale of Brexit. If you have left aside the Harry/Meghan saga to keep up with the Brexit (British exit) story, then you must know that [...]

Part 3 of 3: “CBP Wants YOU! Increased AD/CVD Scrutiny Abounds”   AD/CVD Consequences: Real Live American Disasters  Inflated AD/CVD and high tariffs have real world consequences. One of the hardest-hit industries by high tariffs and AD/CVD besides the steel and aluminum industries is the hardwood industry and those companies who depend upon an inexpensive supply of raw wood and [...]

Part 2 of 3: “CBP Wants YOU! Increased AD/CVD Scrutiny Abounds”   How the Past Defines Today  Thomas Prusa, Professor of Economics at Rutgers University, says that antidumping laws can be traced back to 1916 when the real concern was antitrust law – not allowing large corporations a monopoly in their industries. Both antitrust and antidumping laws were [...]

Why we are Where we are  Honestly, antidumping and countervailing duties (AD/CVD) sound more like terms from a dating app than cosponsors of the serious consequences they can bring to American industry. So, just what do these antiquated-sounding terms mean? Swipe right and we’ll take a look at their definitions; but first, let’s catch a [...]

“Drawback is the refund, reduction or waiver in whole or in part of customs duties assessed or collected upon importation of an article or materials which are subsequently exported”  – U.S. Customs and Border Protection   In the Beginning…  It was the 1780s and everything seemed possible: the Revolutionary War had been won, and there was a central government with a [...]

President Abraham Lincoln had had enough. His troops at the front of the bloody Civil War were ill from rancid food, receiving lame mules and horses, faulty rifles and ammunition, all because of unscrupulous contractors to the U.S. government. As a result, Congress passed the False Claims Act (FCA) on 2 March 1863 which they hoped would provide a remedy for such [...]

Imagine sitting at your desk, doing what you do in your normal trade compliance day. You would no doubt notice if a top supplier were doctoring import documentation. Now imagine if the president of that supplier made an appointment with you, and when he walked into your office, he handed you an envelope filled with large bills. Something would change that day, wouldn’t it? Or would it?  That was [...]