2013

Florida Companies Convicted and Sentenced

In another example of the government’s continuing use of the criminal justice system to enforce international trade laws, three Florida companies and their management were recently convicted and sentenced for importing smuggled toys from China containing lead and containing counterfeit trademarks.

LM Import-Export, Inc., Lam’s Investment Corp., and LK Toys Corp., Hung Lam and Isabella Kit Yeung plead guilty to charges of conspiracy to traffic and smuggle toys containing hazardous substances such as lead, and one count of trafficking in counterfeit goods, in violation of 18 U.S.C. Secs. 371 and 2320, respectively. Co-defendant Yeung plead guilty to one misdemeanor count of submitting a false country of origin label, in violation of 19 U.S.C. Sec. 1304(a). The information, or charging document filed in court, against all defendants, as well as the plea agreements for each defendant can be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida. (If you have trouble getting these documents, email me and I’d be happy to share them with you).
The facts underlying the charges, as stated in court documents, are that from April, 2000, until May 2011, a span of 11 years, the corporate defendants conspired to sell children’s products imported from China in violation of the Consumer Product Safety Act 15 U.S.C. Sec. 2068, and the Federal Hazardous Substances Act, 15 U.S.C. Sec. 1263. Some of […]

By Jennifer Diaz|2013-06-28T19:55:00-04:00June 28, 2013|Best Practices, Import, Intellectual Property Rights, penalty, Seizure, U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP)|0 Comments

Do You Know the Top 10 Tips When Importing?

Do you know the top 10 tips when importing to ensure compliance? If not, here’s why you should attend my Compliance Online webinar on June 27, 2013 at 10:00 a.m., EST.

If you import merchandise into the U.S., you are the responsible party and must be aware your requirements and potential liability. In this presentation, we will discuss how to comply with U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s (CBP’s) vast laws and regulations. By the end of the webinar you will know and understand the importance of:

Tariff classification;
Customs valuation;
Country of origin marking;
Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) Protection and CBP Enforcement; and
Free Trade Agreements (FTA) you should be taking advantage of.

You will also learn basic customs concepts and terms like:

CBP Form 3461 & CBP 7501;
Protests;
Seizure cases;
Liquidated damage claims, Penalties/Fines;
Prior disclosure; and
FP&F Petition Process.

Learn key best practices and hear real life case studies. Learn what to do, and more importantly, what NOT to do, and what the consequences are for non compliance.

To register for this webinar on June 27, 2013 at 10:00 EST, click here.

By Jennifer Diaz|2022-07-07T09:59:03-04:00June 18, 2013|Best Practices, Events, Import, IPR, Trademarks and Logos, Speaking, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP)|0 Comments

Export Regulations and Cloud Computing…Beware!

Co Authored by Perry Sofferman

Forrester Research predicts that the global market for cloud computing services will have increased from $40.7 billion dollars in 2011 to approximately $241 billion dollars by 2020. You can see the ZDNet article here. This figure includes the Platforms as a Service, Infrastructure as a Service and Business Process as a Service delivery models. What this information reveals is that while cloud computing is already a significant part of operational strategy for many businesses (as well as governmental agencies), we should expect it to not only grow as a market but to become even more intertwined with the way we conduct business and store data on a daily basis. Consequently, businesses in general and export compliance officers in particular need to be vigilant and make sure that their use of this important technology is consistent with US export regulations.

When using cloud services, the user is uploading data to available servers in the cloud provider’s server facility(ies). The type of data uploaded and the location of the server where that data is stored can potentially trigger export compliance issues for the user. In fact, the ultimate location of the particular server used to hold the user’s data may be unknown to either the user or the cloud provider. Data can be redirected to various servers in different countries in order to properly allocate server space based on fluctuations of usage in different time zones. It should be noted that this is […]

By Jennifer Diaz|2013-05-28T15:31:00-04:00May 28, 2013|Export, Intellectual Property Rights, U.S. Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), U.S. Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC), U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC)|0 Comments

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has been court ordered to set firm dates for FSMA’s implementation. Details of the court case forcing FDA to set these dates, and the organization that sued the FDA to make this happen follow.
Background
The Center for Food Safety (CFS), a national non-profit public interest and environmental advocacy organization, filed a lawsuit against the FDA on August 29, 2012. The complaint alleged FDA failed to promulgate 7 food safety regulations required by the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA). Congress enacted the FSMA – which was signed into law on January 4, 2011 – to modernize food safety laws and regulations by mandating science-based standards and controls; by providing the FDA with greater authority to prevent and address food safety hazards by taking steps to prevent them from occurring; by strengthening the FDA’s inspection and enforcement powers; and by improving coordination among federal, state, and foreign food safety agencies. CFS documented the foodborne illness outbreaks since FSMA was signed into law, January 4, 2011.

Court Order
The court case is being heard by Judge Phyllis Hamilton, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. Yesterday, May 21, 2013, Judge Hamilton ordered that the FDA and CFS have an extended deadline of June 10, 2013 to file a joint statement with a […]

By Jennifer Diaz|2013-05-22T20:58:00-04:00May 22, 2013|FSMA, U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)|0 Comments

C-TPAT Member Exports to Receive Expedited EU Customs Clearance

The United States and the European Union are now collabroating in an effort to increase the safety and efficiency of international shipments. The two parties have implemented a mutual recognition arrangement for their respective supply chain security programs. The equivalent to the CTPAT in the European Union is known as the Authorized Economic Operator Program. This program is what will allow the EU to enforce this agreement. The implementation of the new bilateral agreement will allow:

US importers authorized under CTPAT to be considered secure
exports to receive a lower-risk score by the customs administrations of EU member states; and
time and money savings.

This program creates an improved supply chain that is secure. The agreement allows importers and exporters to shorten shipping and processing times due to the fewer security related inspections and controls that they are subjected to. The benefits received by both parties are reciprocal when exporting into each others jurisdiction.

However, the agreement contains some exceptions. For instance, only tier 2 and 3 CTPAT importers qualify for full AEO benefits. Additionally, they are also the only importers that may receive lower risk-assesment scores, and consequently, undergo fewer inspections when exporting to an EU member state. Also, CTPAT members must expressly elect for the United States to share certain information with the European Union and certify that their exports meet all applicable requirements. Finally, the mutual recognition agreement will only apply to those CTPAT importers that are also exporters.

The EU and the US have also recently discussed the possibility of a free trade agreement. The mutual recognition agreement will facilitate trade and allow […]

By Jennifer Diaz|2015-11-30T13:14:51-05:00May 10, 2013|CTPAT|0 Comments

Previous 456 Next

Florida Companies Convicted and Sentenced

Do You Know the Top 10 Tips When Importing?

Export Regulations and Cloud Computing…Beware!

June 10 – FSMA Rules Will be Released!

C-TPAT Member Exports to Receive Expedited EU Customs Clearance