Stelfast Inc.
At the conclusion of an antidumping duty administrative review concerning steel-threaded rods imported from China, Stelfast Inc., a family owned and operated manufacturer and distributor of fasteners and specialty parts, unexpectedly received bills from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (“Customs”) amounting to approximately $200 million. Faced with these enterprise-threatening duties, Stelfast turned to Husch Blackwell to find a solution.
CSC Sugar LLC
When the U.S. Commerce Department amended a prior suspension agreement regarding the importation of Mexican sugar in 2017, it changed the purity definition of refined sugar, effectively altering the product definition for trade purposes and significantly imperiling the business of CSC Sugar, whose cutting-edge refining processes were developed to use a higher purity input. CSC came to Husch Blackwell’s international trade team to help craft a strategy to deal with this unexpected hazard.
WPC Technologies
WPC Technologies is the leading American-owned manufacturer and developer of corrosion-inhibiting pigments and stain inhibitors. WPC’s core product line is strontium chromate, a corrosion inhibitor. In 2018, the company became concerned when sales declined and they lost customers who purchased products from two other producers who were selling their competing products at a significantly lower price – a price that was unfair in the U.S. market.
Kivlan Group and Fluorofusion Specialty Chemicals, Inc.
The U.S. domestic refrigerant producers brought a complaint in April 2019 alleging that importers, such as Kivlan and FluoroFusion were circumventing the antidumping duty order on Hydrofluorocarbon Blends from China by importing refrigerant components without posting antidumping duties. At the time the action was filed, the Department of Commerce had specifically excluded imports of refrigerant components as not being subject to the order based upon a finding by the International Trade Commission (ITC) that imported components were not causing injury to the domestic industry. Faced with these allegations of circumvention and the potential of having to post close to 300% in duties, Kivlan and FluoroFusion engaged Husch Blackwell to defend them.
Tube Investments of India
At the conclusion of the antidumping and countervailing duty investigations concerning cold-drawn mechanical tubing from India, Tube Investments of India (TII), a significant global manufacturer of auto parts unexpectedly received an adverse determination by the U.S. Department of Commerce resulting in enterprise-threatening duties. TII worked together with Husch Blackwell to find a solution and significantly reduce their margins in the first administrative review.
TricorBraun
In 2019, when the supply of glass bottles in the U.S. was threatened due to some domestic manufacturers’ attempts to limit the availability of foreign-made bottles, TricorBraun— the largest distributor of primary packaging and the largest distributor of wine bottles in North America—turned to Husch Blackwell to develop a solution.