Cyndee Todgham Cherniak
Cyndee Todgham Cherniak is Counsel in the International Trade Group, Business Law Group and Tax Group at Lang Michener LLP. She practices in Toronto and Ottawa, Ontario Canada and provides assistance to Lang Michener's Vancouver Office.
She is also an adjunct law professor at Case Western Reserve University, School of Law and teaches a course on NAFTA and bilateral trading arrangements.
Cyndee Todgham Cherniak is an international trade lawyer for lawyers, in-house counsel and governments. She acts as a consultant on all forms of bilateral trading arrangement, including free trade agreements, WTO and NAFTA. She has reviewed over 100 preferential trading arrangements (PTAs) and is knowledgeable about negotiation and interpretation of PTAs. Cyndee is writing reports to assist developing countries with their negotiation of PTAs. Her Reports covers topics such GATT Article XXIV and the Enabling Clause, as national treatment, most-favoured nation treatment, market access, non-tariff barriers, rules of origin, trade in services, trade and investment, intellectual property, government procurement, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, trade remedies, safeguards, dispute settlement and institutional structure for regional trade. She is participating in workshops in Asia in the Fall of 2007 and will speak about free trade agreements. Given her extensive expertise in PTAs, she is available to act as an arbitrator, or provide advice to governments or companies on negotiation matters and post-agreement compliance, interpretation and dispute settlement.
Cyndee is a Vice-Chair of the American Bar Association, International Law Section (ABA), Customs and Membership Committees, is a member of the ABA Diversity Task Force, and is Past-Chair of the Women�s Interest Network. Cyndee is the Chair of the Canadian Bar Association, National Commodity Tax, Customs and Trade Committee, Customs Subcommittee. She is a member of the advisory board of the Canada-United States Law Institute. Cyndee is a director of the Canada-China Lawyers� Foundation. She is a conciliator with the Canada China Business Council � China Council for the Promotion of International Trade Joint Conciliation Centre.
Cyndee is listed in the Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory as an up and coming international trade lawyer (2007, 2006, 2005, 2004) and a commodity tax practitioner (2005, 2004). Cyndee is listed in Chambers Global: the World�s Leading Lawyers for Business (2006 and 2007) as an up and coming trade and WTO practitioner in Canada. Cyndee is also listed in The Legal Media Group Guide to the World�s Leading International Trade Lawyers (2007).
Cyndee practises international and trade law including NAFTA verifications, value for duty, tariff classification, import and export controls, bilateral restraint agreements, textile references, anti-dumping and countervailing duties, safeguard actions, Chapter Ten of NAFTA (government procurement bid challenges), Chapter Eleven of NAFTA (investor-state disputes), the WTO Agreements, WTO litigation, The Foreign Extraterritorial Measures Act, and compliance programs/codes of conduct and commodity tax (e.g. GST, ORST, customs duties). Her practice focuses on opining on Canada�s and members� international trade commitments, international trade litigation and arbitrations, alternative dispute settlement, assisting with the completion of questionnaires, commodity tax planning, preparing for and managing audits and verifications, handling objections, re-determinations and appeals, drafting advance rulings, and preparing international compliance programs/codes of conduct, and implementing international business transactions.
Cyndee participated in NAFTA verifications undertaken by the Canada Border Services Agency and the United States Customs Service. She provided advice to U.S.-based clients concerning tariff classification, Canada�s �purchaser in Canada� rules, royalties, and other issues concerning the calculation of value for duty. She has also counselled clients concerning the administrative monetary penalty system (�AMPS�). Cyndee has assisted clients in the preparation of Requests for Re-determinations and Requests for Revocation to challenge administrative decisions in customs matters.
Cyndee represented the Government of China, Chinese Associations and/or exporters in the three of the first four anti dumping and countervailing duty cases against China (Outdoor Barbeques, Carbon Steel and Stainless Steel Fasteners and Copper Pipe Fittings) and the first China specific safeguard case initiated by Canada against outdoor barbeques from China. Cyndee participated in the successful representation of a coalition of importers, retailers and distributors in a China-specific Safeguard case that was filed but never initiated against residential furniture from China. In addition, she represented the Government of China, Chinese Associations and exporters in the recent global safeguard case against imports of bicycles and bicycle frames. Cyndee has represented the China Chamber of Commerce for Foodstuffs, Native Produce and Animal By-Products in the anti-dumping cases against garlic from China. Cyndee also represented a major user of grain corn in the antidumping and countervailing duty case in Canada against U.S. grain corn. Cyndee further represented a Canadian domestic steel produce in antidumping cases filed against rebar from numerous countries.
Cyndee provides advice to Canadian companies doing business in China and with Chinese companies. She places an emphasis on risk management. She assists clients in pursuing opportunities in China while reducing their exposure to global threats and protecting company assets. She has provided advice to large and small companies about intellectual property rights protection and enforcement in China. She helps clients undertake due diligence prior to entering into business relationships in China (including business partners, joint ventures, customers, suppliers and acquisitions). She provided advice on tariff classification,
Cyndee provides advice on all aspects of customs law, including Canada�s �purchaser in Canada� rules, royalties, calculation of value for duty and other customs issues. She has also counselled clients concerning the administrative monetary penalty system (�AMPS�). Cyndee has assisted clients in the preparation of Requests for Re-determinations and Requests for Revocation to challenge administrative decisions in customs matters. She provides advice to developing countries concerning the applicability of the general preferential tariff or the most-favoured nation tariff.
Cyndee has also participating in the representation of industry stakeholders in various WTO cases to which Canada was a party as a complainant or a respondent.
Cyndee is a regular speaker on China related topics. Cyndee is speaking on free trade agreements at the 7th Annual Euromoney Structuring Commodity and Export Finance Asia-Pacific Conference in Singapore on September 20-21, 2007 and the 3rd Annual Euromoney Trade Finance China Conference on November 21-22, 2007 in Beijing, She spoke on China-related topics at the 2006 ABA Fall Meeting in Miami, Florida. She was a speaker at the 2006 New York State Bar Association Fall Meeting in Shanghai. She participated in the January 2005 Canada Mission to Shanghai, Beijing and Hong Kong and was an invited speaker on intellectual property rights protection in China. Cyndee has been an invited guest to speak at Tsinghua University (Beijing) and by MOFCOM and CCPIT on trade remedies.
Cyndee provides advice on government procurement (public sector procurement) and large public private partnerships (including design, build, own, operate and other outsourcing solutions). She has written opinions, drafted RFPs and provided guidance with respect to evaluation practices inconsistent with Canada�s obligations under Chapter 10 of NAFTA, the WTO Agreement on Government Procurement and Chapter Five of Canada�s Agreement on Internal Trade. In addition, she provides advice concerning bilateral investment treaties.
Cyndee provides advice on a variety of commodity tax issues affecting the long term care home/retirement residences industry, construction industry, the computer software industry, the graphic design industry, the entertainment industry, the health care sector, the automotive industry and the financial services industry. Cyndee provides advice on a variety of commodity tax issues in the real estate contexts, such as claiming input tax credits on commercial and multi-use real estate, self-assessing GST, claiming new residential rental property rebates, and whether property is a chattel or a fixture for ORST purposes. Cyndee�s practice involves transfers of large and small, commercial and residential, real estate. Cyndee has participated as a speaker in various Federate Press Conferences, including �Tax Planning for Real Estate Transactions�. Cyndee is the author of the Paper �GST Basics in a Real Estate Context� delivered as part of the Ontario Bar Association�s �GST Bible for Real Estate Transactions: Practice, Precedents and Developments� program. Cyndee is also the author of the Paper �GST Basics Pertaining to Real Estate Transactions� delivered as part of her Ontario Bar Association �The Fundamentals of Commercial Real Estate Law 2001� program.
Cyndee appears before regulatory bodies and tribunals such as the Canadian International Trade Tribunal and makes representations to the Canada Revenue Agency, the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, the Department of Finance, the Export and Import Controls Bureau, the Canada Food Inspection Agency, and the Ontario Ministry of Finance.
Cyndee is a frequent speaker on international trade and commodity tax topics and is a regular contributor to a number of industry publications. She is a guest lecturer at the University of Windsor Law School.
Education
LL.M. degree, York University (Osgoode Hall Law School), 1998
J.D. degree, University of Detroit, 1992
LL.B. degree, University of Windsor, 1992
Professional Affiliations
American Bar Association
Canada China Business Council
Canada-China Lawyers� Foundation
Canada-India Business Council
Canadian Bar Association
Canadian IT Law Association
Canadian Tax Foundation
China Council for the Promotion of International Trade
Indo-Canada Chamber of Commerce
International Law Association
New York State Bar Association
Ontario Bar Association
Organization of Women in International Trade
Toronto Commodity Tax Study Group
