Clients Save Several Billion in Duties
When Husch Blackwell’s clients’ businesses were threatened with billions of dollars in potential duties on imports of steel nails, Nithya and her team were convinced that there was a narrow path to victory given the unique factual circumstances of the case. To that end, the team crafted a strategy that focused on the changes and shifts in the market for the supply of nails and the lack of capacity and production capability of the U.S. domestic industry to supply and meet the demands of the U.S. market. This ensured that a coalition of interested parties—namely, importers, distributors, and suppliers—in the U.S. would be willing to make the case.
As part of a two-prong strategy aimed at both the International Trade Commission (ITC) and the U.S. Department of Commerce, the team brought forward compelling evidence that the importation of the nails at issue did not injure and would not threaten to injure U.S. producers. We successfully won the final injury investigation at the ITC, which issued a negative determination ensuring that no antidumping or countervailing duties would be instituted. The decision potentially saved the clients and other importers several billion dollars in duties over a five-year period.
Customs Request for Information Response Leads to Significant Savings in Duties
A client importing finished goods which were eligible for duty-free treatment under the U.S.-Columbia Free Trade Agreement and manufactured in Columbia approached Nithya Nagarajan, partner in the International Trade and Supply Chain Group, because U.S. Customs issued a request for information asking for proof and supporting documentation to demonstrate that the products truly were manufactured in Colombia. The manufacturing process relied on materials originally sourced from China, and products that retained China as their country of origin would be subject to significant antidumping and countervailing duties. Customs raised several questions about whether the product was truly made in Colombia or made in China (and thus subject to additional duties).
Nithya led a team of Husch Blackwell attorneys to provide a comprehensive analysis of the production process, supporting documentation, calculations, and all the requisite proof to effectively demonstrate to Customs that the products were Colombian origin. Customs determined within one week of receiving this response that there was sufficient manufacturing occurring in Columbia to meet its substantial transformation test, providing the client significant savings in duties.
Client Maintains Zero Rate
A client received a zero cash deposit rate in the original antidumping duty investigation based upon the producer/exporter combination. However, after ten years, Customs questioned the continued use of the zero rate where the producer and exporter remained the same. The Husch Blackwell International Trade and Supply Chain team led by Jeffrey Neeley and Nithya Nagarajan, implemented a multi-step legal strategy which necessitated first filing a scope ruling request at the Department of Commerce. After Commerce rejected that request without offering any procedural option, Husch Blackwell appealed Commerce’s inaction to the Court of International Trade, and then filed a changed circumstances review request that forced Commerce to make a decision and apply the same zero rate to all of the exports by the client. Husch Blackwell’s efforts resulted in a win for the client and regardless of whether there were additional entities involved in the transaction the client’s exports continued to be eligible for a zero antidumping duty deposit rate.
Company Prevails in Three-Week Audit Over Steel Imports
When the U.S. Department of Commerce alleged that a foreign company dumped a steel product in the United States, Nithya worked hand in hand with the client to provide comprehensive sales analysis, cost analysis and full responses to the agency. She successfully guided the foreign company through a three-week onsite audit, and at the conclusion of the case, the client received a 0 percent cash deposit authorized upon entry of the accepted steel product.