A while back (I am being intentionally vague here to avoid identifying anyone) a U.S. client company contacted our China lawyers about shutting down its China WFOE and/or terminating all of its roughly 47 China employees in one fell swoop. The U.S. company had discovered rampant corruption among its employees and its CEO wanted the
On September 28, 2022, the Coalition of Freight Coupler Producers filed antidumping (AD) and countervailing duty (CVD) petitions against U.S. imports of certain freight rail couplers and parts thereof (“FRCs”) from China and Mexico. This coalition consists of one U.S. producer McConway & Torley (M&T) and the union workers at the one other U.S. producer, Amsted Rail Company, Inc. (Amsted).
Expect U.S. customs to get even tougher on imports in the next year.
If you have or are going to have any employees in China, you need a China-centric written employment contract with all of your China employees.
U.S.-China Trade Policy and The Future of China-Focused Section 301 Duties and the best tariff mitigation strategies you should employ now.
U.S. companies importing goods from Southeast Asia must beware of transshipment schemes by Chinese suppliers. Not only do these schemes mean dealing with China problems after a supposed China departure, they also give rise to serious liabilities if importing into the United States. Over the past few years, companies have had plenty of reasons to
I recently received a message from an American lawyer interested in working abroad. In this post I share part of my reply, together with some additional comments. While this post is China-focused, most of what I say applies to other countries. It’s also important to note that much of what follows is moot at this
Tomorrow, March 17, I will be a panelist at a Washington State Bar Association (WSBA) event on dual nationality, together with Dr. Dana Raigrodski and David Freeburg. Registration is FREE for everyone and the event is approved for CLE credit in Washington State. Click HERE to register! The event’s scheduling on St. Patrick’s Day is
The panelists will also discuss the different legal approaches to dual citizenship. In the United States, acquisition of a foreign citizenship does not jeopardize status as a U.S. citizen. On the other hand, countries such as China do not recognize dual citizenship. This makes dual citizenship a dynamic legal issue, with different implications depending on the two countries in question. Though the United States does not prohibit its citizens from holding a second passport, there are still important considerations to be taken into account by Americans who are or are. contemplating becoming citizens of a foreign country. Fred will draw on his experience as a former U.S. consular officer to illustrate some of the potential risks. In some cases it may be more convenient for an American to use a second passport to enter a particular country (perhaps because that country requires Americans to obtain visas). However, in case of arrest, the person may be denied access to U.S. consular assistance. A second citizenship could also complicate efforts to obtain security clearances from the U.S. government.
Not surpisingly, our China lawyers have been getting a ton of questions on how to close a China WFOE. It is difficult and time consuming to form a WFOE in China. As you might expect, the procedure for shutting down a WFOE is also subject to formal procedures and regulations. You cannot simply abandon your company; PRC law requires a formal de-registration procedure be followed for the shutting down of all companies. The most important part of this de-registration process is a formal liquidation of the company, similar to a Chapter 7 bankruptcy proceeding under U.S. law. Many foreign investors figure they have already suffered enough from Chinese bureaucracy so they avoid this formal process and simply abandon their WFOE. In taking this course of inaction, they assume there will be an administrative dissolution and that will be the end of the matter. They are wrong.
