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Thompson Hine LLP, a full-service business law firm with approximately 400 lawyers in 11 offices, was ranked number 1 in the category “Most innovative North American law firms: New working models” by The Financial Times and was 1 of 7 firms shortlisted for The American Lawyer’s inaugural Legal Services Innovation Award. The firm has been recognized by the National Law Journal as a Legal Technology Trailblazer and featured by Bloomberg for its innovative service delivery models, which drive accuracy and predictability. The firm’s commitment to innovation is embodied in Thompson Hine SmartPaTHTM – a smarter way to work – predictable, efficient and aligned with client goals. For more information, please visit ThompsonHine.com and ThompsonHine.com/SmartPaTH.

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<p>On March 11, 2022, President Biden called on Congress to pass legislation that will revoke normal trade relations (NTR) with Russia, and <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2022/03/11/fact-sheet-united-states-european-union-and-g7-to-announce-further-economic-costs-on-russia/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced</a> that the administration &ldquo;will work closely with Congress to deny Russia the benefits of its WTO membership and ensure that Russian imports do not receive most favored nation treatment&rdquo; in the U.S. economy. Several bills aimed at revoking NTR with Russia and/or Belarus have been introduced in Congress during the last two weeks. These include the <a href="https://worldtradelaw.typepad.com/files/dogget_blumenauer_russia_trade.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">No Most Favored Nation Trading with Russia Act</a>, <a href="https://worldtradelaw.typepad.com/files/no-trading-with-invaders-act-final.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">No Trading with Invaders Act</a>, and <a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/senate-bill/3786/committees">another bipartisan bill</a> suspending NTR with Russia and Belarus (text of the bill is not available).</p>
<p>NTR refers to nondiscriminatory treatment of imports from a country, consistent with the WTO rules. Currently, only two countries &ndash; Cuba and North Korea &ndash; do not have NTR status. Permanent NTR status was granted to Russia in 2012 following the passage of the Russia and Moldova Jackson-Vanik Repeal and Sergei Magnitsky Rule of Law Accountability Act of 2012 (&ldquo;Magnitsky Act&rdquo;) and Russia&rsquo;s accession to the WTO. In practice, revocation of NTR status for Russia and Belarus will mean that the imports from these countries will not benefit from non-discriminatory treatment, and be subject to the higher rates of duty under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) set forth in column 2 of the HTSUS.</p>

core/freeform

SmarTrade

Senior Legislative and Regulatory Policy Advisor

Scott E. Diamond

Partner

Samir D. Varma

Francesca M.S. Guerrero

International Trade

Biden Calls on Congress to Suspend “Normal Trade Relations” Status of Russia