Wiley Rein Hosts Major NAFTA Event on Steel Customs Fraud, Circumvention, and Evasion

Wiley Rein hosted a special all-day symposium yesterday for steel industry representatives and government officials from all three NAFTA countries—Canada, Mexico, and the United States.  Presented and sponsored by the North American steel industry, this major event focused on efforts to prevent steel from being fraudulently imported, or imported with the intent to circumvent or evade antidumping (AD) and countervailing duty (CVD) orders.

Technical, commercial, and legal experts from Canada, Mexico, and the United States presented material to highlight the severe problem of import fraud, circumvention, and evasion (FCE) as it relates to steel.  The event drew almost 100 attendees.  Government speakers  included Troy Riley, executive director of Commercial Targeting & Enforcement at U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), and Michael Walsh, director of CBP’s ADCVD Policy & Programs Division.  Kevin Dempsey, senior vice president, general counsel, and secretary of the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI), and Ron Watkins, president of the Canadian Steel Producers Association (CSPA), were among the industry presenters.

Alan H. Price, chair of Wiley Rein’s International Trade Practice, was featured on a panel discussion of industry efforts to address specific FCE schemes.  Another panel, featuring Wiley Rein International Trade partner Timothy C. Brightbill, focused on common methods of avoiding AD and CVD payments.

AISI, CSPA, the Committee on Pipe and Tube Imports, the Special Steel Industry of North America, the Steel Manufacturers’ Association, and Camara Nacional de la Industria del Hierro y del Acero (CANACERO) were among organizations representing the North American steel industry at the event.

Wiley Rein’s International Trade Practice, recognized by Chambers USA as one of the country’s elite international trade practices, represents clients in domestic and international trade regulation matters, market access issues, and dispute resolution.  The Team—which has a strong record of winning large and complex antidumping and countervailing duty cases on behalf of major U.S. industries—was named “International Trade Group of the Year” for four consecutive years by Law360.