Dan Harris is a founding member of Harris Sliwoski, an international law firm where he mostly represents companies doing business in emerging market countries. Most of his time is spent helping American and European companies navigate foreign countries by working with the international lawyers at his firm in setting up companies overseas (WFOEs, Subsidiaries, Rep Offices and Joint Ventures), drafting international contracts, protecting IP, and overseeing M&A transactions.
In addition, Dan writes and speaks extensively on international law, with a focus on protecting foreign businesses in their overseas operations. He is also a prolific and widely-followed blogger, writing as the co-author of the award-winning China Law Blog.
When a Puerto Vallarta Retreat Collides With Cartel Reality: Can You Recover Your Deposit? Recent violence tied to the Jalisco New Generation Cartel has unsettled companies and families planning travel there. For years, Puerto Vallarta has been viewed as a controlled destination for executive retreats and high-end gatherings. When cartel-related violence in Jalisco dominates national
What to Expect in a Business Mediation and How to Avoid Costly Mistakes This post started as an email. We were preparing to mediate a large cross-border litigation matter for a Vietnamese client. The case had many moving parts: complex international legal issues, multiple parties, and a lot at stake. I wrote a detailed briefing
Enforcing US Judgments in Spain: Recognition, Strategy, and Reality You won a final US money judgment against a Spanish defendant with assets in Spain. Now you want to get paid. Here is the reality: a US judgment does not enforce itself in Spain. To collect in Spain, you generally need a Spanish court to recognize
Why Foreign Companies Should Not DIY a U.S. LLC Your first American customer sends you a $50,000 purchase order. They need your ACH details by Friday. You formed a $699 LLC online and now you cannot open a U.S. bank account, or you cannot open one fast enough to keep the deal. This is not
Forming a Foreign-Owned U.S. LLC that Avoids the $25,000 Form 5472 Penalty and Bank Account Rejections Despite all the geopolitical issues swirling around the United States (or perhaps because of them), our law firm has never been busier helping foreign companies establish a business here. We have also never been busier helping companies that tried
How Mid-Market Companies Cut Legal Costs 40% Without Losing Global Reach Specialized expertise, agile teams, and innovative fees are reshaping international legal services. Global businesses are asking a hard question: does Big Law (with its $2,000+ hourly rates) still deliver value in cross-border deals? Increasingly, the answer is no. Companies are finding that boutique international
How to Settle a U.S. Litigation Matter: A Guide for Foreign Companies A few years ago, a Chinese manufacturing company received an $850,000 settlement offer just two months into a U.S. breach of contract dispute. The offer seemed premature—they hadn’t even started discovery, their engineers were confident in their position, and the CEO insisted they
The Bank Account Switch Scam: What to Do Before and After It Happens to You The bank account switch scam is one of the fastest-growing and most damaging forms of wire fraud and business email compromise (BEC) facing businesses today. This payment fraud scheme typically involves a supplier—or someone impersonating your supplier—requesting that payments be
Country-Specific Legal Challenges in Restaurant Expansion Understanding How Real-World Law Shapes Global Success Expanding your restaurant internationally tests every part of your business—from operations and supply chains to culture, finance, and, of course, the law. International expansion is more than translating your brand or replicating your menu. As lawyers with decades of experience in cross-border
Employment, Data Privacy, and Consumer Protection Expanding your restaurant internationally isn’t just a growth strategy—it’s a transformative leap that touches every part of your business: operations, supply chains, culture, finance, and, critically, the law. The excitement of new markets and culinary landscapes is real—but success abroad demands far more than translating your brand or replicating
