Starting in late August there have been media reports indicating that the Trump Administration was considering granting Emergency Use Authorization (“EUA”) for the Oxford-AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine currently undertaking Phase 3 trials in the UK. These reports follow an earlier announcement made by the U.S. Department of Health Human Service’s Biomedical Advance Research and Development Authority that the Oxford-AstraZeneca partnership had been granted more than $1 billion to aid in the ..read more

Prior to 2017, the U.S. International Trade Commission (“ITC”) had not completed a “safeguard” investigation under Section 201 of the Trade Act of 1974 (“Section 201”) for nearly two decades. Many within the trade community believed that this provision, in its present form, was at odds with U.S. treaty obligations under the World Trade Organization (“WTO”). Most prominently, the Agreement on Safeguards (“SG Agreement”), read in conjunction with the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade ..read more

For the first time in almost 50 years, the United Kingdom (UK) has issued its own tariff regime.  The new UK Global Tariff (UKGT) will be effective from January 1, 2021 and is set to replace the European Union’s Common Customs Tariff (EU CCT), which continues to apply throughout the UK’s Brexit Transition Period.The UKGT will apply to all goods imported to the UK unless:The good is imported from a country that has a trade agreement in place with the UK;Any tariff suspensions or reliefs issued ..read more

On July 14, 2020 the Court of International Trade (CIT) issued a decision in Transpacific Steel LLC v. United States, (Transpacific) holding that Presidential Proclamation No. 9772, which increased tariffs on steel imported from the Republic of Turkey (Turkey) under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, violated mandated statutory procedures as well as the Fifth Amendment’s Equal Protection guarantees.As background, President Trump issued Proclamation 9772 on August 10, 2018 under ..read more

There was a time when a multilateral approach to address concerns over profit-shifting tax avoidance and transfer pricing strategies employed by multinational corporations (MNCs) seemed possible. These days, a multilateral solution that includes the United States seems particularly unlikely. Unfortunately, in the absence of a more coordinated response to the issues posed by MNCs and the tax challenges of the digital age, the major tax disputes are expected to play out in the arena of ..read more

At the end of May, the Trump administration broadly announced that it will begin the process of stripping Hong Kong of its autonomous status under U.S. law and policy. The announcement comes in the wake of both China’s passage of a national security law that threatens Hong Kong’s independence as an entity separate from mainland China and U.S. Secretary of State Pompeo’s subsequent refusal to certify that Hong Kong is autonomous from China.As background, the source of Hong Kong’s privileged ..read more

On April 21, 2020, Barnes, Richardson Colburn LLP opened a new line in the challenges to Section 232 duties on steel and aluminum products. In this case, brought on behalf of a Michigan-based importer, the challenge is directed at the exclusion process implemented by the Commerce Department. Specifically, because Section 232 exclusions are not applicable to all importers of the same product and are not implemented by changes to the Harmonized Tariff Schedule, the exclusions result in the HTS ..read more

The spread of COVID-19 in the United States has prompted an urgent need for the supply of medical devices (most prominently, personal protective equipment (PPE) and ventilators) to keep up with the corresponding increase in demand from the healthcare sector.  Despite this demand, uncertainty remains due to the fluid regulatory framework which currently applies to imports of medical devices to the United States to deal with the Covid-19 Public Health Emergency.  Due to the technical nature of the ..read more

The attention received by Hobby Lobby, the Green Family, and their Museum of the Bible from a New York Times article in early April warrants an overview of the company’s inadequate legal compliance efforts when acquiring and importing certain cultural property, as well as a few brief notes on the cautions and obligations of acquirers and importers of cultural property. In July 2010, Steve Green, president of Hobby Lobby and co-founder of the Museum of the Bible, visited the United ..read more

On April 1, 2020, Customs announced its intention to revoke the classification treatment it previously afforded to a 1937 Alfa Romeo automobile, specifically a 1937 Alfa Romeo 8C 2900B Touring Lungo Berlinetta. According to the proposed revocation, what Customs once regarded as a collectors’ piece of historical interest of heading 9705 which enters duty-free, will now be classifiable as a plain-old motor car of heading 8703. If entered today, the vehicle would be subject to a 2.5% general rate ..read more