Why Choose Us

"In today’s highly regulated international trade environment, it is not enough to have good intentions. It is imperative that those good intentions are combined with sound, practical advice and a solid compliance program."

The Law Offices of Michael A. Capuzzi, P.A. practices Customs and International Trade Law exclusively.  Our Customs and International Trade Law practice has offices nationwide and vetted partner firms around the world working with government agencies.
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Unlike traditional generalist law firms, all we do is Customs and International Trade Law.  We “climb the shelves” and "open the boxes” while interacting personally and directly with individuals at all levels of your organization; from loading dock personnel to the highest levels of management.  We take an “operational approach” to compliance and legal matters to provide holistic solutions involving all facets of the organization.  We also consider the “downstream effects” of decisions outlining the impact on sourcing, sales, manufacturing, and customer/government relations.  We have experienced most Customs issues first-hand and can explain the “how’s and why’s” in an understandable and practical manner that increases compliance at every level of your organization.

Our staff is comprised of a group of professionals with over 100 years of combined experience in Customs and International Trade matters. The team includes Licensed Customs Brokers, paralegals, technical support specialists, and subject matter experts that will assist you with the complex issues related to both import and export compliance.
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Our experienced group brings a business-oriented background having worked for law firms, major corporations, importers and exporters, customs brokers, and freight forwarders. We have well-established and long-standing relationships with CBP, domestic and global customs brokers and freight forwarders, and many top importers and exporters. Our firm’s professionals have a vast range of experience addressing challenging issues at all levels of Customs, from the local ports to matters handled by headquarters personnel.

• Current, successful, comprehensive, global “turn-key” compliance solutions covering import, export and free trade agreement operations, implemented in multiple large manufacturing companies with world-wide operations.
  
• Obtained multiple refunds from various administrative relief mechanisms from governments around the world, including but not limited to:
• • US$4,700,000.00 in refunds from various protests and petitions to U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
  • CA$2,200,000.00 in NAFTA refunds from the Canada Border Services Agency.
    
  • AU$1,000,000.00 in US-Australia Free Trade Agreement refunds from the Australian Customs and Border Protection Service on a single project.
• Successfully obtained multiple Section 232 exclusions resulting in over US$1,000,000.00 in refunds and projected duty savings
  
• Received favorable mitigation of US$750,000.00 in various U.S. Customs claims and penalties reducing the amount to US$30,000.00
  
• Provided country-specific tariff classifications and the import requirements related to thousands of pieces of individual machinery and components for multiple capital projects involving global manufacturing plant expansions and refurbishment
  
• While preparing a Prior Disclosure in the U.S., through our classification and country of origin determinations, we transformed what initially appeared to be an US$800,000.00 duty tender into a US$12,000.00 refund
• Successfully mitigated multiple penalties from U.S. Customs and Border Protection regarding violations of the Solid Wood Packing regulations/Emergency Action Notifications (EAN) resulting in over $243,000 in actual savings from the original amounts demanded
  
• As part of our management and oversight of our client’s Customs Broker and Freight Forwarder activities, our import entry and documentation review service identified and addressed thousands of errors that resulted in over US$250,000.00 in duty savings and avoidance of significant penalties and interest
• Creation and maintenance of multiple product classification and Free Trade Agreement qualification databases and individual classifications covering over 175,000 distinct part numbers under the Harmonized Tariff Schedules of the following countries:
• • United States of America
  • Canada
  • United Mexican States
  • People's Republic of China
  • Republic of India
  • Republic of Turkey
  • Republic of South Africa
  • Federal Republic of Germany
  • European Union (other than Germany-specific)
    • Kingdom of Spain
    • Republic of Italy
    • French Republic
    • Republic of Bulgaria
    • Kingdom of Belgium
    • Republic of Poland