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Introduction

The DOE in 2023 significantly increased its enforcement activity against manufactures and importers alleged to have violated EPCA’s energy and water conservation standards and related certification requirements, based on available public information. As we previously flagged, the substantial rise in enforcement activity comes as the Biden Administration increasingly focuses on EPCA as a means of achieving environmental policy objectives, including reducing carbon emissions. The Department has continued its enforcement efforts in 2024 and early data from this year sheds light on the Department’s enforcement priorities.Continue Reading Appliance Standards: Steep Increase in Department of Energy Enforcement Cases Puts Appliance Manufacturers and Importers at Financial Risk

Label of a hazardous flammable chemical in a scientific laboratory

On September 28, 2023, EPA released a long-anticipated final rule aimed at gathering information on products in commerce that contain PFAS chemicals.  As defined in the regulation, the term “PFAS” includes a group of materials known as fluoropolymers, which are widely used in gaskets, tubing, electrical wiring, composite materials, printed circuit boards, membranes and many other manufactured articles.  Under EPA’s new regulation, any company that has imported any of these types of articles containing fluoropolymers (or any other PFAS chemical) at any time since 2011 will be required to submit extensive information to EPA regarding those products and activities.  The pre-publication version of the final rule can be found here.Continue Reading Importers of Equipment, Machinery and Electronics Beware: You’re Probably Subject to EPA’s New PFAS Regulation

US & China Trade War

After a pause in 2022, there has been much talk of the continuation, or resumption, of a wave of retail bankruptcy cases as we begin 2023.  2022 was highlighted by Revlon’s filing (discussed here: Revlon May Signal Another Wave of Retail Bankruptcies | Retail & Consumer Products Law Observer (retailconsumerproductslaw.com)).  Revlon pointed to a number of issues that led to its filing, including most prominently, supply chain issues. Severe impediments in the supply chain – whether the inability to source product or the costs and delays in received goods — have been cited by many debtors since Revlon since as a leading cause of their distress.  And it may get much worse before it gets better, particularly for companies that source, directly or indirectly, from China.Continue Reading Continued Pain in the Retail Sector:  Coming Enforcement of Forced Labor Laws

The U.S. Supreme Court is poised to clarify the extraterritorial reach of the Lanham Act for the first time in seventy years.  The decision will impact corporations’ ability to seek damages for international trademark infringement, and may resolve a circuit split on the applicability of the Lanham Act on foreign defendants’ foreign conduct.  The Court will review the Tenth Circuit’s decision in Abitron Austria GmbH et al. v. Hetronic International Inc. (“Hetronic”) and the extraterritoriality of the Lanham Act, seemingly the Court’s desired outcome after requesting the United States weigh in on Abitron Austria GmbH’s (“Abitron”) certiorari petition filed in January 2022. Continue Reading U.S. Supreme Court to Decide the Extraterritorial Application of the Lanham Act

This is an update to the International Trade Law Blog’s December 22, 2021 post on the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act.

On December 23, 2021, President Joe Biden signed into law the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA). This action by President Biden comes a week after the law passed both chambers of Congress. After stalling in the Senate last year, an updated version of the bill was reintroduced on January 27, 2021 by Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) and passed the Senate on July 14. The House version of the bill was introduced by Congressman James McGovern (D-MA) on February 18, 2021 and passed on December 8. Congressman McGovern and Senator Rubio reconciled the bill and delivered it to each respective chamber a week later. The reconciled version then passed the House and the Senate through unanimous decisions on December 14 and December 16, respectively.
Continue Reading Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act Signed into Law

Supply chain issues are a top concern for many companies across industries and markets. Please join Crowell & Moring for a webinar series that explores these issues and provides insights on the various legal and tactical considerations as companies think about supply chain disruption, impacts, and solutions.

Torts & Product Liability Issues
Wednesday, January 12,

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A perfect storm of unprecedented stress on the global supply chain from the continuing COVID-19 pandemic coupled with the promise of increased FCPA enforcement by U.S. regulators makes this an opportune time for retailers to take stock of changes to their corruption risk profile and ensure that they adjust their compliance programs accordingly.
Continue Reading Supply Chain Pressures Trigger Escalating FCPA Risks — Impact on Retailers

Supply chain issues are a top concern for many companies across industries and markets. Please join Crowell & Moring for a webinar series that explores these issues and provides insights on the various legal and tactical considerations as companies think about supply chain disruption, impacts, and solutions.

Overview of Supply Chain 
Wednesday, November 17 at

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On October 13, President Biden issued a Fact Sheet entitled Biden Administration Efforts to Address Bottlenecks at Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, Moving Goods from Ship to Shelf to help address the “delays and congestion” across the transportation supply chain. As has been widely reported in recent weeks and months, the global supply chain has been hard hit by large increases in e-commerce and delays and shutdowns implemented to curb the spread of COVID-19. The release confirms public and private commitments to move goods more quickly and to secure the resiliency of American and global supply chains. To do so, the Biden Administration is focusing on the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, which act as the ports of entry to the United States for 40% of containers received. The President, together with leadership from these ports, are undertaking a series of public and private commitments as noted below.
Continue Reading Biden Administration Works with Industry Stakeholders to Address Supply Chain Delays at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach