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Agencies Serko & Simon Deals With
Representing Clients Before All of the Government Agencies Responsible for the Administration and Regulation of Import-Export Trade
Serko & Simon has a successful history of client representation before a wide range of government agencies, including the U.S. Customs Service, the Food and Drug Administration, the Department of Commerce, the United States Trade Representative, the Federal Trade Comission, the International Trade Commission and the Federal Maritime Commission.
The firm has represented countless importers, exporters, Customs brokers, freight forwarders, nonvessel operating
common carriers, shippers, manufacturers, sureties, foreign governments, trade associations and individuals. Representations have been before the Customs Service and other federal agencies, involving virtually every conceivable issue, including tariff and trade legislation, classification and valuation of merchandise, seizures, trademark and copyright violations, unfair import competition, etc. For this, Serko & Simon has achieved a reputation for its accomplishment in this specialized area of law.
Mr. Serko's experience has been particularly strong with respect to client representation in civil and criminal fraud and penalty cases. Mr. Simon's established expertise in the field of classification is well-recognized. Representation of clients under audit has been a major focus of Mr. Gluck's knowledgeable attention, as it has been for Messrs. Serko and Simon.
The following highlights our work involving some of the federal government agencies before which we practice.
The U.S. Customs Service
The Customs Service, the agency through which most of the other agencies' rules and regulations governing imported products are enforced, is one with
which we deal with constantly. The firm has a working relationship with all levels of the Customs Service in the New York area, at Headquarters in Washington, D.C. and throughout the country. We are in communication with Customs officials on a daily basis, for a variety of matters, on behalf of our clients.
With the passage of the Customs Modernization Act (as part of the North American Free Trade Agreement Legislation), importers can no longer simply supply Customs with accurate and complete entry information to avoid penalties and cargo release delays. The law now requires that importers exercise "reasonable care" and correctly classify and establish the value of entries, as well as abide by the various other Customs laws (e.g., establishing the proper country of origin of merchandise, meeting Customs' marking requirements, etc.).
This shift in burden is significant in that Customs is authorized, by the Mod Act, to assess substantial penalties in instances of failure to exercise reasonable care. For example, Customs may assess a penalty, for each release of merchandise, not to exceed $100,000.00 or 75% of the appraised value of the merchandise, whichever is less, for wilfull failure to maintain, store, or retrieve demanded information.
Discussions concerning the meaning and application of the reasonable care standard have centered upon an importer's duty to act reasonably. Recent discussions have begun to consider the broker's responsibility in terms of the reasonable care standard.
These are the issues which will be confronting the trade community in the next several years. By our participation in the regulatory process, we have, and will continue to have, a hand on the pulse of future developments, as well as the opportunity to have our clients heard.
Federal Maritime Commission (FMC)
Serko & Simon has represented and continues to represent a broad spectrum of clients and client interests in matters under FMC jurisdiction, including service contracts, shippers' associations, freight rates and cargo description issues, as well as defending clients against allegations of violations of the ocean shipping statutes.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
We have represented interests in seeking to have penalties reduced for unwitting violations of the Clean Air Act, involving the importation of freon absent consumption allowances. We have also submitted comments relative to proposed changes in the Clean Air Act regulations as part of the EPA rulemaking process.
Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
Representing clients before the FDA is an important aspect of our practice. Clients whose products include ceramicware, ginseng tea, meat, fish, vegetables, etc., are subject to FDA regulations concerning lead content, pesticide contamination, proper marking, etc., rely on us to monitor FDA regulations and proposed regulations which might affect their interests.
We take an active approach to our representation of these clients in an effort to ensure that unfavorable regulations are not implemented and that current regulations are applied in a fair and even-handed manner.
Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC)
We have represented clients contesting the belated attempt at collection of trucking charges, enlisting the participation of the ICC in the process, where necessary, to determine carrier inclusion in rate bureau tariffs. We have also mediated disputes involving increased charges assessed against brokers whose importer accounts had shipments on which the carrier or its trustees sought additional payments.
Department of Commerce
The firm deals extensively with the Department of Commerce on behalf of clients concerned with the Department's import and export administrations, quota/visa restrictions and antidumping/countervailing duty matters. We have participated on behalf of our clients in hearings, investigations, administrative review proceedings and computation of duties. As a matter of interest, we argued on behalf of importer clients in the first North American Free Trade Agreement ("NAFTA") case contesting countervailing duty decisions by the U.S. Department of Commerce on Canadian imports.
The United States Trade Representative (USTR)
The firm has represented several clients before the USTR in connection with the retaliatory action against China proposed by the USTR as part of its "301" investigations of trade practices relating to intellectual property protection and market access for U.S. products. In the "301" proceedings aimed at China in early 1995, we were again successful in our efforts to remove our clients' products which had been on the original list of items identified by the Trade Policy Staff Committee as being considered for retaliatory duties.
We have also been active for many years in representing client interests before the USTR regarding the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade and the Generalized System of Preferences.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC)
The firm represents textile and apparel importers and other clients before the FTC in connection with product labeling, marking and other issues.
International Trade Commission (ITC)
We have represented clients before the ITC in investigations of alleged unfair methods of competition in connection with our clients' importations. Serko & Simon has also become active in representing clients in actions before the ITC involving antidumping and countervailing duties.
U.S. Department of Agriculture
We have represented clients before the Department of Agriculture with regard to admissibility of meat and agricultural products.
Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC)
In securing approval for entry of merchandise under CPSC product standards, we have been instrumental in convincing the agency to accept independent test results as satisfactory proof of compliance, which, in turn, have been accepted by Customs. In other instances, we have directed our clients' attention to CPSC marking and content requirements in an effort to anticipate and correct problem areas before they impact our clients.
Fish and Wildlife Service (F&W)
We have been successful in preventing the destruction of goods erroneously marked as containing Endangered Wildlife products, as well as preventing the exportation of goods erroneously marked as Threatened Wildlife products.
Foreign Governments
Services provided to our clients has included providing assistance concerning importing into other countries, as well as the United States. We have also represented clients before government agencies of other countries, in particluar Canada and Mexico, concerning issues of country of origin, classification and value, both within particular and outside the context of NAFTA.
EMail: David Serko, Joel Simon, General Inquiries
All material copyright © 1996 by Serko & Simon