After the Justice Department tasked the Fraud Section with investigating and prosecuting alleged tariff evasion crimes, Levy Firestone Muse Partner Jason Manning co-authored an opinion for Bloomberg Law discussing the likely wave of enforcement actions to come—and the implications for Canadian and European importers in particular.
Canadian and European companies and their executives are among the most accessible and attractive foreign targets. The trade volume is staggering . . . But the risk goes beyond volume. Canada and most European countries maintain robust mutual legal assistance treaties with the US, giving the DOJ access to cross-border evidence from those countries that DOJ doesn’t enjoy elsewhere. Canadian executives are especially vulnerable due to their frequent US travel. At the border, US law enforcement can (with limits) seize electronic devices without a warrant, making mobile data a potential evidentiary goldmine. Prosecutors looking to vindicate the administration’s rhetoric about “foreign cheaters” will find Canadian and European firms both symbolically potent and procedurally convenient targets.
Read the full opinion, “Tariff Enforcement Will Hit Canada, EU Companies Hardest” on Bloomberg Law, or download the PDF.
