Korea Fair Trade Commission Denies US Firms Due-Process Rights, Alleges USTR

The Trump administration initiated “formal consultations” Tuesday with the South Korean government aimed at bolstering the due-process rights of U.S. companies that go before the Korea Fair Trade Commission, said the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative. Procedural “shortcomings” denied U.S. companies “certain rights” when going before the commission in “competition hearings,” said USTR. U.S. firms were denied the opportunity in the hearings to “review and rebut the evidence against them,” in violation of the U.S.-Korea free-trade agreement, it said. The administration wants Korea to act immediately to bring it “into compliance” with the trade agreement, said USTR. “Pending amendments” to the agreement “fail to address U.S. concerns” that the hearings “continue to deny U.S. firms due process rights,” it said. The Korean Embassy in Washington didn’t comment.