Overview On July 20, 2020, Republican Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri introduced the Slave-Free Business Certification Act (“the Act”). If passed, the Act would require every “covered business entity” — defined as any issuer under section 2(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 that has annual, world-wide gross receipts of $500 million — to audit and report on instances of forced labor in their supply chains. Companies that deliberately violate the Act could be liable…
The novel coronavirus outbreak continues to have a substantial impact across the globe. As of the writing of this post, more than 87,000 cases of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) have been identified in 60 countries and territories around the world, claiming the lives of 2,977 people. Travel restrictions are becoming increasingly tighter at airports, with countries either imposing mandatory health screenings on travellers arriving from certain countries, or denying entry to passengers who have recently…
China’s General Administration of Customs (GAC) has announced several facilitation measures aimed at supporting businesses engaged in foreign trade successfully resume production as soon as possible. On February 16, the GAC issued various measures to strengthen, support and ease difficulties faced by businesses, simplify business registration or filing processes, and help small- and medium-sized enterprises face challenges stemming from import/export issues. We outline several key measures: Accelerate inspections. Customs authorities will aim to accelerate inspection…