Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act & Anti-Forced Labor

Taft’s UFLPA and Anti-Forced Labor team helps companies comply with the rapidly evolving requirements of U.S. anti-forced labor laws, including Withhold Release Orders (WROs) and the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA). Companies turn to us for strategic advice on forced labor investigations and resulting litigation, responding to merchandise detentions and seizures, and building anti-forced labor compliance programs. We represent companies in sectors that have been the focus of intense enforcement by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and other U.S. government agencies, including renewable energy, apparel, base metals, automotive, batteries, chemicals, PVC flooring, and agricultural products.

Our team includes seasoned attorneys with deep experience in international trade law, anti-forced labor laws, business and human rights, cross-border investigations, white-collar defense, and other areas of corporate compliance. We speak several languages, including Mandarin, and have close relations with specialized trade counsel around the world, helping us facilitate advice and coordination with clients in high-risk jurisdictions and enabling us to effectively guide clients through communications with customers and other business partners. When appropriate, we partner with trusted auditors, risk consultants, and technology companies –  including companies that conduct supplier due diligence using open-source data and on-the-ground intelligence, help map and trace supply chains, and test the origin of materials using isotopic testing– to better service our clients. Our team understands how competing regulations and norms among different jurisdictions pose challenges to developing workable compliance strategies. We leverage our cultural fluency and legal expertise to help companies address these tensions while minimizing risks of enforcement under applicable laws and respecting the human rights of workers and other stakeholders.

• Successfully petitioned for the release of merchandise detained by CBP pursuant to WROs and the UFLPA, including solar modules, apparel, automotive parts, PVC flooring, and aluminum products.
• Assisted automotive original equipment manufacturers  (OEMs)  and  Tier  1  suppliers with the development and implementation of risk assessment methodologies and ant-forced labor compliance policies and procedures including standard operating procedures on third-party due diligence, supply chain traceability protocols, and codes of conduct.
• Oversaw human rights-focused factory audits in Asia and remediation efforts.
• Investigating concerns of forced labor raised through compliance hotlines or other channels
• Advised on anti-forced labor due diligence in major transactions such as long-term supply agreements for critical minerals, mergers and acquisitions, investments, and formation of joint ventures.
• Developed responses to sensitive inquiries from investors, multilateral organizations, government and non-governmental organizations, and other stakeholders about potential company involvement in alleged forced labor issues.
• Assisted with the development and implementation of risk assessment methodologies and anti-forced labor compliance policies and procedures.
• Advised legal and compliance teams to identify, analyze, and structure investigations information to support compliance with public disclosure laws, and developed appropriate explanatory language for such disclosures.
• Secured vacatur of a CBP forced-labor finding at the U.S. Court of International Trade on behalf of client Kingtom Aluminio S.R.L., successfully challenging CBP’s reliance on stale evidence and failure to apply statutory standards to the facts — restoring the client’s ability to import aluminum products into the United States.