Lars-Erik A. Hjelm

Partner

Areas of Focus

Lars-Erik A. Hjelm

Partner

lhjelm@akingump.com

Areas of Focus

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Biography
  • Focuses on customs law and policy.
  • Served in various capacities at the U.S. Customs Service.

Lars-Erik Hjelm represents Fortune 500 companies whose imports and exports are regulated by the Department of Homeland Security agencies of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), as well as by other federal agencies. His experience covers the wide range of commercial and enforcement laws and policies that CBP and ICE administer, including:

  • Duty preference programs
  • Tariff classification
  • Valuation
  • Customs brokerage
  • Intellectual property rights enforcement
  • Country of origin marking
  • Binding rulings
  • Audits
  • Antiterrorism and border protection initiatives (e.g., the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism)
  • Export controls
  • Sanctions
  • Disclosures
  • Seizures and forfeitures
  • Fraud and strategic investigations
  • Civil and criminal penalties.

From 1996 to 1999, Lars-Erik was the assistant chief counsel and managing lawyer for the Customs Service in the Mid-Atlantic, where he supervised the regional legal office and was the principal legal advisor to the customs ports of Baltimore, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C., and the customs Special-Agent-in-Charge.

From 1989 to 1996, he was a lawyer in the Office of the Chief Counsel and the Office of the General Counsel of the Department of the Treasury. During his tenure, he represented the agency before the Court of International Trade (CIT), federal district courts and a U.S.-Canada Free Trade Agreement dispute resolution panel. He served as a Special Assistant U.S. Attorney, taught customs law at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center and assisted in the drafting of the Customs Modernization Act.

Representative Work
  • Counseling clients through intensive customs audits.
  • Representing a company before the CIT in a historic case on CBP’s refusal to grant duty-free treatment under the Generalized System of Preferences.

Languages
  • Swedish

Education
  • J.D., Emory University School of Law, 1989

  • B.A., University of Pennsylvania, with honors, 1985

Bar Admissions
  • District of Columbia

Recognitions
  • Who's Who Legal: Trade & Customs 2023
  • Chambers USA, International Trade: Customs, 2012 to 2023.
  • Chambers Global, 2016 to 2022.
  • The Legal 500 US – Leading Lawyer, 2023 and International Trade, 2016 to 2023.
  • The Best Lawyers in America, International Trade and Finance Law, 2006 to 2022.
Affiliations and Public Service
  • Board of Directors, Swedish-American Chamber of Commerce, Washington, D.C.
  • Member, Joint Industry Group.
  • Member, National Customs Brokers and Forwarders Association of America, Inc.
  • Member, ABA Customs Law Committee.
  • Former Assistant Chief Counsel, Mid-Atlantic, U.S. Customs Service.
Speeches and Publications
  • Speaker, “19 CFR 111: Modernization of Customs Broker Regulations and How It Might Benefit, and Progress, Broker/Importer Relations,” ACI’s Import Controls Conference, November 8, 2022.
  • “Tweets, Tariffs and Trade Wars,” Integrated Dual-Use Commercial Companies, March 14, 2019.
  • “The UK as a ‘Third Country’: How Industry is Preparing for Potentially New Customs Valuation,” C5’s 10th Advanced Conference on Customs Compliance (Held in Partnership with HMRC), London, December 5, 2017.
  • “UK and U.S. Trade Relationship: What is the Impact on UK Businesses?” C5’s 10th Advanced Conference on Customs Compliance (Held in Partnership with HMRC), London, December 5, 2017.
  • “Next Steps on NAFTA – The Process & Politics of Renegotiation,” United States Fashion Industry Association webinar, June 6, 2017.

Insights and Achievements

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              Distinguished by our areas of focus, as a cohesive and integrated firm, we are defined by the caliber of our work, the responsiveness of our service and a culture that is rooted in collaboration and forward-thinking.

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