An uncivil regulatory proceeding

When we think of regulatory enforcement and administrative procedures, we usually think in term of civil actions. Well, sometime the government can get really pissed off. A criminal indictment is described on Mayer Brown's blog in "The 'Wolff' at Importers’ Doors: Criminal Statute Is New Tool in Trade Enforcement Cases", by Anthony M. Alexis, Sydney H. Mintzer and Margaret-Rose Sales (Washington, DC). It begins:

US importers have long been subject to civil penalties for violating US trade law. However, with the recent indictment of 11 individuals and 6 corporations for allegedly conspiring to illegally import goods into the United States, the US government may be signaling a sea-change in its enforcement strategy by subjecting trade law violators to severe criminal penalties as well.

The article compares the threats posed by this indictment with the usual penalties associated with similar administrative actions. Thanks to Lexology for the pointer. EMM