Lumber Liquidators’ Compliance Program Sample Clauses

Lumber Liquidators’ Compliance Program. After the 2008 Lacey Amendments, LL engaged a third party to assist in developing a compliance plan, which resulted in the 2010 Lumber Liquidators Lacey Act Compliance Manual (“2010 Manual”). LL set forth numerous guidelines in the 2010 Manual, which included the following statements: 1. The manual would be made available to all departments and employees whose job function directly related to importation of wood products. 2. Employees were provided with specific websites to assist in determining the proper species of wood being imported. 3. LL should be “confident” in their declaration of country of harvest on all Lacey Act Declarations, at a minimum requiring government documents sanctioning harvest, transport, and export of the wood products. 4. Suppliers should supply all supplemental documentation showing country of harvest, legality of harvest, and chain-of-custody prior to shipment of the wood product. a. If a supplier did not provide the required supplemental documentation, the purchase order should be rescinded; b. If there was a “long-standing relationship” between LL and the supplier, the required documentation could be provided after shipment; c. LL would conduct periodic post-entry reviews and quarterly internal audits of all import paperwork and supporting documentation to ensure that all imports were legal and accurately declared. Quarterly reports of the audits were to be provided to management. The 2010 Manual was neither widely distributed nor relied on. Some employees whose direct duties included Lacey Act compliance were not aware of the 2010 Manual’s existence. On January 10, 2012, LL Holdings produced a document entitled “Lacey Summary,” which was intended to provide Lacey Act compliance rules and regulations for relevant LL employees, including employees and personnel in the recently-purchased China RO. The 2012 Lacey Summary included the following statements: 1. Every vendor and every species should be evaluated for compliance risk; 2. LL should re-source or discontinue working with vendors considered high risk; 3. LL should discontinue any products considered high risk; 4. All suppliers must provide documentation demonstrating legal harvest prior to importation, including where applicable: a. Certificates of legality; b. Certificates of origin; c. Harvest documents; and d. Phytosanitary certificates; 5. Employees should be aware of “red flags” when dealing with suppliers, such as: a. Suppliers who are reluctant to produce documentat...