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CASE HISTORIES
Gibbons & Company provides strategic counsel
and a broad range of government relations services to global
corporations and organizations to increase revenues, cut
operating costs and gain competitive market advantages. Recent
examples of the firm’s work include:
• For the leading developer, manufacturer and marketer of
products made from amorphous alloys the firm developed U.S.
Department of Defense funding for further testing and
procurement programs for new high performance armor piercing
ammunition and high performance aerospace applications. The
Defense programs further validated the performance
characteristics of the revolutionary new material and became the
leading source of the company’s post IPO revenues. The firm also
developed a comprehensive plan and ongoing program for the
company to proactively protect and enhance its intellectual
property (IP) assets in accord with its current and future
business goals and potentially competitive position in the
marketplace.
• For the nation’s third largest cancer research and treatment
hospital, the firm has developed research initiatives and
obtained more than $6 million annually in federal research and
development funds over the past seven years. These specifically
designated funds are appropriated directly to the hospital by
federal law. The firm has also obtained a federal statutory
exemption from the Medicare program’s prospective payment system
(PPS) for patient treatment cost reimbursements for the center.
This Medicare PPS exemption increases the cancer treatment
hospital’s revenues by more than $5 million annually. The
combined new revenues for the cancer treatment hospital for
fiscal years 2001–2004 exceeded $16 million annually.
• For the world’s second-largest manufacturer of first aid
products, the firm significantly enhanced the global
competitiveness of the company by eliminating all U.S. import
duties on its primary raw materials. Faced with decreasing
revenues and profits as a result of surging imports of competing
products, this worldwide leader of first-aid bandages and
related products was facing a shutdown and relocation of its
manufacturing operations to Mexico and the Philippines in order
to remain competitive in the U.S. market. Gibbons & Company
obtained a Federal statutory suspension of the U.S. Customs duty
on all imports of the company’s self-adhesive tape and created a
certified Free Trade Subzone for all other imported materials
needed in the manufacturing operations. The elimination of all
import duties allowed the company to reverse its plans to shut
down its U.S. plant. The duty suspension savings to the company
are in excess of $1 million. The company is currently able to
compete in the U.S. market on parity with foreign imports and
with growing profit margins.
• For the United State’s third largest trading country in Latin
America, the firm advised the President, the National Security
Council, and the Ministry of Foreign Trade on highly sensitive
international trade matters. The firm’s client became
decertified under the U.S. annual review of its anti-narcotics
cooperation programs and the country faced billions of dollars
of increased U.S. tariffs on its products exported to the U.S.
Gibbons & Company provided overall communications coordination
and direct advocacy to the highest-level trade policy officials
in the Congress, federal agencies, and the Executive Office of
the President. The country narrowly averted punitive trade
sanctions potentially costing billions of dollars to its export
businesses and to U.S. consumers. The U.S. Government
recertified the country the following year, defusing a major
bilateral trade dispute and litigation in the World Trade
Organization (WTO).
• For the nation’s second largest public university system, the
firm, during and eight year period, obtained over $185 million
in new federal research and develop money for a wide range of
medical, environmental, and new technology programs. The firm,
working closely with each of the universities, developed and
moved through the Congress multi-million-dollar proposals to
create national centers of excellence at specific universities.
This representation, evaluated annually by only how much federal
money was obtained in the prior Congressional budget cycle,
required very frequent and extensive interaction with the
Appropriations Committees and the senior leadership of the U.S.
House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate. These substantial
new funds improved the university system’s national ranking by
more than 25 percent.
• For the oldest and one of the most widely recognized insurance
companies in the world headquartered in Europe, the firm has
provided on-going strategic counsel on trade and tax policies
that go to the core of this unique company’s ability to operate
in the United States. The company, due to its historically
uncommon business structure, has faced intensive pressure from
the competing U.S. reinsurance industry regarding the tax
treatment of its U.S.-sourced income. The firm assisted in the
highly contentious negotiations of a complex business and tax
agreement with the U.S. Government that has allowed the company
to continue underwriting high-risk insurance of every
description in the United States. Other
accomplishments for clients include:
• For a major pharmaceutical manufacturer,
developed Childhood Vaccine Compensation Act and successfully
lobbied through Congress, over vociferous opposition from the
White House, to permit compensation to a small class of victims
who suffer adverse reactions to childhood disease vaccines.
• A leading importer of high-end automobiles
from Europe developed and lobbied for passage of legislation to
restrict the importation of “gray-market” automobiles that did
not meet U.S. safety standards.
• Duty suspension of a major cancer treatment
drug from Europe, which significantly lowered cost to U.S.
consumers and increased revenues for manufacturer.
• For the world’s largest beverage company,
worked with NASA to develop a carbonated beverage dispenser to
be used in space.
• The country’s first and largest pre-paid
college program, crafted tax legislation and directly lobbied
Congress to change the federal taxation of the state sponsored
program and eliminated several major tax liabilities for both
the purchaser and the beneficiary of such savings programs.
• For a major municipal transportation agency
involving the U.S. Supreme Court’s interpretation of a federal
statute regarding third-party liabilities in a major class
action tort case, developed legislation to restate the
congressional intent of the law decided in the court decision
and thereby negating the U.S. Supreme Court decision adverse to
the agency.
• In the course of final NAFTA negotiations
secured a ten-year transition amendment in the agreement for a
“price snapback provision” allowing the immediate imposition of
U.S. duties on the imports of citrus products from Mexico if the
U.S. market dropped below certain commodity prices.
• For the largest importer of floral and
perishable products from the Andean countries, developed a more
streamlined U.S. Customs and U.S. Department of Agriculture
inspection and clearance process to allow for more rapid and
secure product importation procedures saving the importer
company millions of dollars in air cargo transportation and
security clearance costs.
• Significant reductions of foreign import
duties and the elimination of non-tariff barriers on global food
products for the world’s leading producer of cereal and
convenience foods.
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