The Foreign Trade Association is offering a course in preparation for the October 2018 Customs Broker License Exam. The 11 week exam preparation course is taught by Erik Smithweiss of Grunfeld, Desiderio, Lebowitz, Silverman & Klestadt LLP, a partner resident in the firm’s Los Angeles office. The course starts on Monday, July 30, 2018. This course is highly successful for those planning to take the broker’s exam and also provides an excellent overview of customs law and compliance for importers not intending to take the broker’s exam.

Arthur W. Bodek will serve as a panelist at the 13th Annual Lawyering In the Fashion Industry program presented by the New York City Bar – Center for CLE Programs.

Erik Smithweiss will be conducting a full day seminar on Customs Valuation in Los Angeles for the Foreign Trade Association. The seminar will provide an in-depth review of the rules for customs valuation used in WTO member countries, with a particular emphasis on U.S. Customs regulations and recent developments. It will also cover practical advice for managing compliance with customs valuation rules and for reporting value adjustments. The seminar takes place on Tuesday, June 19, 2018.

This week the Court of International Trade ruled in favor of GDLSK client OMG, Inc. and found that the Department of Commerce had unlawfully treated imported zinc anchors as subject to the antidumping and countervailing duty orders on steel nails from Vietnam.

Arthur W. Bodek will serve as a panelist at the UIA program titled “Challenges Of The Legal Profession A Result Of The Revision Of The Free Trade Agreements In The International Context” being held in Mexico City from June 7-8, 2018.

Frank J. Desiderio to be Honored by the Government of Italy On June 5, 2018, Frank Desiderio will be presented with the prestigious Italian decoration ‘Cavaliere’ in the Ordine al

On May 23, 2018, partners Frank J. Desiderio and Alan R. Klestadt served as panelists at the GEODIS Trade Seminar held at the Union League Club in Philadelphia, PA.

On May 18, 2018 Representative Messer proposed legislation (H.R. 5886) to add Art and Antiquities dealers to the financial reporting requirements of the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA). The proposed Bill was referred to the House Committee on Financial Services for further consideration.

David M. Murphy will present “What’s Hot” at the 32nd Annual Spring Seminar of at the National Association of Foreign Trade Zones (NAFTZ) on May 22, 2018.

James McAndrew to attend a meeting with the House Financial Services Committee, on behalf of his client base, to discuss their proposed legislation to add dealers in art and antiquity to the list of regulated financial institutions under the Bank Secrecy Act (1991). Such legislation would subject the art trade to enormous regulatory and reporting requirements that, if not done in accordance with financial industry standards, could result in significant fines ,penalties, and even criminal liability.

On May 1, 2018, Frank Desiderio will participate as a panelist on the topic of “Prior Disclosures” at the National Customs Brokers and Freight Forwarders Association Annual Conference at the Westin Mission Hills Resort and Spa in Rancho Mirage, California.

Last week, GDLSK achieved two very important victories for our clients at the Court of International Trade (CIT), reversing Department of Commerce (Commerce) decisions regarding the assessment of antidumping duties on merchandise imported from China. Both of these decisions may have a favorable impact for other exporters/ importers of merchandise subject to antidumping duties.

Significant changes to the Reconciliation Entry Program are scheduled to soon take effect. Included among these changes are the elimination of blanket entry flagging, a simplification of the application process and changes to the reconciliation transmission procedures. It is imperative that importers and their customs brokers utilizing the reconciliation program understand the impact of these changes in advance of their implementation.