March 2026

On March 31, 2026, Brandon Lord, the Executive Director of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (“CBP” or “Customs”) Trade Programs Directorate, Office of Trade, filed a status update (the “Declaration”) with the Court of International Trade (“CIT”) further outlining Customs’ progress in developing the Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries (CAPE) functionality within ACE. CAPE has four integrated components: Claim Portal, Mass Processing, Review and Liquidation/Reliquidation, and Refund.

The U.S. Supreme Court recently heard oral arguments in Flowers Foods, Inc. v. Brock, No. 24-935, a case to determine whether a last-mile delivery driver who picks up products and delivers them within the same state qualifies as a “transportation worker engaged in interstate commerce” and is exempt from the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA)…

On March 19, 2026, Brandon Lord, the Executive Director of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, filed a status update with the U.S. Court of International Trade (“CIT”) outlining CBP’s progress in developing a new Automated Commercial Environment (“ACE”) functionality intended to support refunds of tariffs that were imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (“IEEPA”).

On March 18, 2026, the Trump Administration announced a 60-day waiver of the Jones Act, which requires that cargo transported between U.S. ports be carried on vessels that are U.S.-built, U.S.-flagged, and U.S.-crewed. Pursuant to Cargo Systems Messaging Service (“CSMS”) Message No. 68096516, the waiver took effect March 18, 2026, and is currently scheduled…

On March 12, 2026, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”) filed a declaration with the Court of International Trade providing an update on the portal to be used for CBP to issue International Emergency Economic Powers Act (“IEEPA”) tariff refunds. According to the declaration, there will be a claim portal for users to interface with…

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ITC Finds Strawberry Imports from Mexico Harming US

On March 12, 2026, the International Trade Commission (“ITC”) determined that imports of fresh winter strawberries from Mexico, under Harmonized Tariff Schedule 0810.10.40, are injuring the U.S. domestic industry.  The ITC will issue a further update announcing the final phase of the investigation via a scheduling notice…

To address disruption in the global energy flow resulting from the conflict with Iran, the White House is considering a temporary waiver of the Jones Act—the law requiring cargo moving between U.S. ports to be carried on U.S.-built vehicles. If this waiver goes into effect, it will have important implications for ocean shipping stakeholders.

To…

Office of the U.S. Trade Representative building in Washington, DC

On March 12, 2026, United States Trade Representative (“USTR”) Greer announced a new investigation under Section 301(b) of the Trade Act of 1974 relating to the “failure to impose and effectively enforce a ban on the importation of goods produced with forced labor are unreasonable or discriminatory and burden or restrict U.S. commerce.” According to…

On Wednesday, March 11, 2026, United States Trade Representative (“USTR”) Greer announced a new investigation under Section 301(b) of the Trade Act of 1974 relating to “structural excess capacity and production in certain manufacturing sectors.” According to the Federal Register Notice, “[k]ey trading partners have developed production capacity untethered from the incentives of domestic…