Julia Webster

Julia is a tested advocate in the boardroom and the court room. She advises Fortune 500 companies on complex supply chain structuring (free trade and investment protection agreements, valuation, tariff classification, origin rules), and business-critical sanctions and export controls compliance matters. Her industry experience spans food/agriculture, technology, pharmaceuticals, consumer/retail, mining/metals, steel manufacturing/fabrication, industrial manufacturing and energy.

She has a wealth of trade and commercial litigation experience, representing clients before the Canadian International Trade Tribunal, the President of the Canada Border Services Agency, the Federal Court, the Federal Court of Appeal, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice and administrative tribunals across Canada. She has counseled companies on sensitive cross-border internal investigations, multijurisdictional legal proceedings, voluntary disclosures, trade compliance verifications (audits) and compliance with lobbying laws. The breadth and depth of her international trade and customs expertise establishes her as one of the most versatile advocates in the country.

Julia is ranked with Chambers Canada (International Trade/WTO), Legal 500 Canada (International Trade), Best Lawyers (Administrative and Public Law, Corporate and Commercial Litigation and Corporate Law, International Trade), Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory (White collar Defence & Investigations), and Lexology Index (Business Crime Defence).

She is a Certified Customs Specialist with the Canadian Society of Customs Brokers, a member of Transparency International Canada’s Legal Committee, and a sessional lecturer at Queen's University, Faculty of Law, where she co-developed Law 453: International Business Crime.

At Baker McKenzie, Julia has represented the following parties:

• Represented the Canola Council of Canada in a dumping investigation into Canadian origin canola seeds initiated by China's Ministry of Commerce.
• Represented Hilti in a dumping/subsidization administrative review and expiry review before the Canada Border Services Agency and the Canadian International Trade Tribunal.
• Represented Rio Tinto Alcan in a dumping/subsidization expiry review before the Canadian International Trade Tribunal.
• Represented multiple global technology companies in trade compliance verifications focused on valuation conducted by the Canada Border Services Agency.
• Represented luxury retailers in trade compliance verifications focused on classification and origin by the Canada Border Services Agency, including appeals of final determinations.
• Represented Canadian importers in Customs Self-Assessment program audits conducted by the Canada Border Services Agency.
• Represented multinationals making voluntary disclosures to the RCMP and Global Affairs Canada regarding non-compliance with Canadian sanctions and export controls.
• Successfully represented individuals, Canadian companies and multinationals in obtaining sanctions permits issued by Global Affairs Canada.

Prior to joining Baker McKenzie, Julia handled the following matters:

• Represented Rio Tinto Alcan in a dumping/subsidization investigation hearing before the Canadian International Trade Tribunal relating to silicon metal imported from Thailand, Laos, Malaysia, Norway, Kazakhstan, Brazil and Russia (NQ-2017-001) and an expiry review relating to silicon metal from China (RR-2018-003).
• Represented a TSXV-listed company in an investigation into violations under the Corruption of Foreign Public Officials Act.
• Represented POSCO and the Canadian Coalition for Construction Steel in the Canadian International Trade Tribunal Safeguard Inquiry into the Importation of Certain Steel Goods (GC-2018-001).
• Represented Fluor Canada in a judicial review before the Federal Court of Appeal of a decision by the Canadian International Trade Tribunal regarding an injury finding on certain fabricated industrial steel components (2020 FCA 58) and the resulting review by the Canadian International Trade Tribunal (NQ-2016-004R).

• Recipient, David Wells-Leonard Prize in Information Privacy

• Law Society of Ontario
• Canadian Bar Association
• Transparency International
• Canadian Society of Customs Brokers (Certified Customs Specialist)
• Importers and Exporters Association of Canada