Gibson Guitar, Forfeiture, and the Lacey Act Strike a Dissonant Chord

摘要

Cries that Gibson was denied due process have been invoked to gather support for amending the Lacey Act. But closer scrutiny belies these claims. Despite the sometimes heated rhetoric and efforts to litigate this dispute in the press, Gibson in fact had available multiple avenues to contest forfeiture and seek the return of the seized wood. Some of Gibson's arguments prevailed; as noted, the government agreed to return the Indian wood following a petition for remission and mitigation.