DOJ's Trade Fraud Task Force plans to model its tariff enforcement efforts after the DOJ Health Care Fraud Unit's "data-drive playbook to develop leads," DOJ Criminal Division Senior Counsel Cody Herche said at the American Conference Institute's annual anti-corruption conference, according to attorneys at Morgan Lewis. The attorneys said Herche's comment indicates "potential criminal violations of US tariff laws," including the False Claims Act and the statute against smuggling goods into the U.S.
Electronics importer Harman International Industries agreed to pay more than $11.8 million to settle allegations it evaded antidumping and countervailing duties on aluminum extrusions from China, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Michigan announced on Nov. 26.
DOJ has increasingly relied on an undervaluation theory for trade enforcement cases brought under the False Claims Act in its increased attempt to police trade fraud and may be looking to include "corporate integrity agreements" as part of trade-related FCA settlements, attorneys at Faegre Drinker said during a Nov. 13 webinar that focused on increased trade enforcement.
Sara McLean, former assistant director of DOJ's commercial litigation branch, has left the agency after over 26 years of service, she announced on LinkedIn. McLean joined DOJ in 1999 before becoming assistant director of the commercial litigation branch in 2010. In this role, she supervised False Claims Act enforcement involving cyber, healthcare, procurement and financial fraud matters.
The Industry Alliance for Trade EnforcementNOW, a new coalition, is asking the administration and Congress to make changes in trade enforcement to aid domestic manufacturers.
The standing up by DOJ of the Trade Fraud Task Force indicates the Trump administration is pouring significantly more resources and attention into prosecuting tariff evasion and customs fraud, and will use the various criminal and civil enforcement tools at their disposal, various attorneys said.
Michael Granston, former deputy assistant attorney general for the Commercial Litigation Branch in DOJ's Civil Division, has rejoined Covington as a partner in the False Claims Act investigations and litigation practice group, the firm announced. Granston worked at DOJ for nearly 30 years, serving as deputy assistant attorney general since 2019, where he managed litigation and enforcement of FCA, international trade and intellectual property matters. Before going to DOJ, he was an associate in Covington’s litigation and white collar practice groups.
DOJ launched a cross-agency "Trade Fraud Task Force" on Aug. 29 to "bring robust enforcement against importers and other parties who seek to defraud the United States," the agency announced. The task force will bring together attorneys from the agency's civil and criminal divisions, along with officials at CBP, to target tariff evasion and "smugglers who seek to import prohibited goods into the American economy."
Importer Allied Stone agreed to pay $12.4 million to settle claims that it violated the False Claims Act by evading antidumping duties and countervailing duties on quartz surface products from China, DOJ announced. The FCA case was initially filed by Melinda Hemphill, a whistleblower in the case, who will receive a $2,170,875 cut of the settlement.
Asking other countries to open their markets to more exports from the U.S. is causing significant changes to how countries have historically conducted trade, according to speakers on Gibson Dunn's Aug. 8 webinar "U.S. Trade Policy: Navigating Uncharted Waters."