Mr. Cecil Leong is the managing director of Bryan Cave International Trade, leading a team of almost 25 consultants in 7 countries, all of whom have niche specialties in the area of customs and international trade. 

Mr. Leong is recognized as a specialist in the area of customs advisory in Asia. In Singapore, he has been advising more than half of the automotive import and distribution industry for the past 11 years on matters pertaining to customs valuation, classification, post-entry audits, transfer pricing methodologies, wholesale/distribution/dealer contracts and advocacy with Singapore Customs. He has been involved in several high profile cases with Singapore Customs, including one resulting in a landmark decision made by the Attorney-General’s Chambers in favor of the client. In China, Mr. Leong has been involved in several significant customs valuation cases over the past 5 years in Shanghai, Guangzhou, Huangpu, Waigaoqiao FTZ, Pudong Airport and several other jurisdictions.  He has also been involved in customs cases in India, Indonesia, Hong Kong, Malaysia, the Philippines, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand and Turkey.

Select Representations

• Represented a British tobacco company in minimizing its customs and excise duty exposure into Thailand with the use of WTO customs valuation methodologies.

• Analyzed the opportunities and risk with the FTAs negotiated by Southeast Asian countries, particularly the ASEAN-China FTA, for a Japanese automobile manufacturer.

• Represented a Swiss industrial machinery manufacturer to mitigate its customs duty exposure in Suzhou, China.

• Represented a major Norwegian manufacturer of marine paints to obtain VAT refunds on exports in the port of Shekou, Shenzhen.

• Represented a U.S. importer of non-ferrous metals in customs advocacy and valuation matters in Ningbo, Shanghai and Tianjin as a result of a post-entry audit conducted by the Anti-Smuggling Bureau of China Customs.

• Represented a major U.S. manufacturer of automotive parts and components in its customs valuation issues in Anting, Wuxi, Shanghai, Shanghai Pudong Airport and Seoul as a result of a post-entry audit conducted by the Anti-Smuggling Bureau of China Customs.

• Represented a major UK/Austrian steel company in its customs valuation issues in the port of Huangpu in Guangdong province.

• Represented a distributor of Japanese automobiles in Singapore in negotiations that affect customs duty exposure with its principal.

• Assisted a German automobile manufacturer with wholesale operations in Singapore in transfer price planning and justification with Singapore Customs.

• Represented a French automaker in its application and advocacy with Singapore Customs to establish a national sales company in Singapore.

• Researched tariff classification of more than 10 products for a Japanese consumer electronics company for its exports into ASEAN, South Korea and Taiwan.

• Assisted a major U.S. aircraft manufacturer in analyzing the Status of Forces Agreement (“SOFA”) and the implications of electronic design and data for the repair and maintenance of aircraft in Japan.

• Explored indirect tax, warehousing and transfer pricing strategies for establishing a regional hub in Waigaoqiao FTZ for a French alcohol company.

• Assisted a European alcohol company in the establishment of an ASEAN hub for export to markets in Southeast Asia and North Asia and the review of regulatory, direct/indirect tax.

• Assisted a Japanese consumer electronics manufacturer on the regulatory issues surrounding the export mobile phones from China to Taiwan.

• Assisted a major European tobacco company to structure a major incentive scheme for investment in rural development to be tabled to the Government of Malaysia that is compliant with WTO Agreements.

• Assisted a major Japanese automaker in structuring an incentive scheme in the Philippines for the production of CBUs.

• Advised on the application and advocacy between the Philippines and Thailand for a Japanese automaker to receive AICO Scheme privileges.

• Advised a Belgian manufacturer of industrial chocolate to obtain CEPT Scheme privileges from its manufacturing base in Singapore to other ASEAN member countries.

• Advised a Japanese manufacturer of industrial chemicals to obtain AIJV Scheme privileges from its Singapore manufacturing base for exports into Thailand.

• Advised a Japanese manufacturer of food products to receive AIJV Scheme privileges for exports from Malaysia to other ASEAN member countries.

• Assisted the Government of Vietnam in reviewing the implementation phase of the Automobile Masterplan.

• Assisted the Government of Vietnam and the General Department of Customs to understand the implications of the WTO Agreement on Customs Valuation.

• Assisted the Government of the Philippines in reviewing the WTO compliance of its Motor Vehicle Development Plan.

• Assisted the Government of Japan in the review and update of FTA negotiations by ASEAN member countries and changes in rules and regulations in the individual member countries in Southeast Asia.

• "Made in China", Panel on Product Safety "Who is Watching the Gates" at the Western Regional Conference of the American Association of Exporters and Importers, California, USA, January 20-22, 2008.

• "ASEAN Trade Facilitation", Panel on "Improvement on Intra-Regional Physical Distribution System and Logistics System" at the 33^rd ASEAN Japan Business Meeting, Tokyo, Japan, October 31-November 2, 2007.

Professional Appointments & Others

• Chairman, Singapore National Committee, ASEAN-Japan Business Meeting (“AJBM”).

• Founding Member, Global Legal Customs Association (“GLCA”).

• FTA Panel of Advisors, International Enterprise Singapore.

Education

• B.A., Political Science, summa cum laude, California State University.

• M.A., International Policy, Stanford University.

Languages

• English, Mandarin.