The Commerce Department's decision to reverse the adjustment to an antidumping duty review respondent's reported costs, relying instead on the actual costs of prime and non-prime products as reported by the respondent, complies with the standard set in the Dillinger France v. U.S decision, Commerce said. Replying to the antidumping respondent, Maverick Tube Corporation, in a Nov. 3 reply brief, Commerce said that its position did not require further consideration, but in fact a reversal, to comply with orders from the Court of International Trade (Husteel v. U.S., CIT #19-00112).
Jacob Kopnick
Jacob Kopnick, Associate Editor, is a reporter for Trade Law Daily and its sister publications Export Compliance Daily and International Trade Today. He joined the Warren Communications News team in early 2021 covering a wide range of topics including trade-related court cases and export issues in Europe and Asia. Jacob's background is in trade policy, having spent time with both CSIS and USTR researching international trade and its complexities. Jacob is a graduate of the University of Michigan with a B.A. in Public Policy.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit on Nov. 2 rejected agricultural merchandise importer Ben Ghee Tan's rationale for not appearing before CBP to testify in an investigation over owed duties. Tan argued that CBP hadn't provided enough information about the subjects he was to be asked during testimony, as required by the statute. A three-judge panel at the 9th Circuit sided with a California district court in this case, rejecting Tan's interpretation of the text (United States v. Ben Ghee Tan, 9th Circ. #20-56399).
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit should reverse a Court of International Trade decision that found that CBP's "indirect method" for weighing importer New Image Global's tobacco wraps that included the weight of additives was legally and scientifically valid, New Image argued in its Nov. 1 opening brief. The Federal Circuit should remand the case to instruct the trade court that the original test for weighing the tobacco wraps was valid, the importer said.
The Court of International Trade erred when it took "bypass" liquidations into its consideration of treatment previously afforded importer Kent International's children's bicycle seats, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit said in a Nov. 3 opinion. Remanding the issue to the trade court, a three-judge panel at the Federal Circuit, however, upheld CIT's determination that there was no de facto "established and uniform practice" (EUP) regarding the customs classification of kids' bike seats.
Importer Incase Design filed two complaints at the Court of International Trade in a bid to secure its preferred classification of its car Apple cellphone chargers. CBP liquidated the chargers under Harmonized Tariff Schedule subheading 8504.40.95, which provides for “[e]lectrical transformers, static converters (for example, rectifiers) and inductors; parts thereof: Static converters: Other,” dutiable at 1.5%. Incase argues that the proper HTS home for the car chargers is 8504.40.85, which provides for “[e]lectrical transformers, static converters (for example, rectifiers) and inductors; parts thereof: Static converters: For telecommunication apparatus,” free of duty (Incase Design Corp. v. U.S., CIT #16-00235, #17-00046).
Manufacturer and distributor Irwin Industrial Tool filed a complaint at the Court of International Trade seeking to secure a particular customs classification for its locking pliers in line with prior CIT rulings on the issue. The locking pliers have two handles with two opposing metal jaws with metal teeth connected by a joint or pivot that also includes a spring mechanism (Irwin Industrial Tool Company v. U.S., CIT #15-00107).
International conglomerate Honeywell filed a complaint at the Court of International Trade to secure its preferred customs classification of its radial and chordal brake segments imports. After they're imported, the brake segments are manufactured into brake discs for airplanes (Honeywell International Inc. v. U.S., CIT #17-00256).
The Commerce Department reverted to its initial decision in an antidumping duty investigation to adjust a Turkish pipe exporter's post-sale price by only one-third of a late delivery penalty in Nov. 2 remand results filed at the Court of International Trade. Submitting the remand following a mandate from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit reversing a CIT opinion, Commerce also dropped its particular market situation adjustment to the respondent Borusan Mannesmann Boru Sanayi ve Ticaret's costs for the sales-below-cost test (Borusan Mannesmann Boru Sanayi ve Ticaret A.S. v. U.S., CIT Consol. #19-00056).
Antidumping review respondent Hyundai Steel Co. "shifted its narrative" when answering a supplemental questionnaire from the Commerce Department on remand from the Court of International Trade, U.S. Steel argued in comments on the remand results. Arguing against Commerce's decision to drop its adverse facts available finding over a discrepancy between two product codes, U.S. Steel argued that Commerce mistook the court's decision as "somehow requiring Commerce to blind itself to Hyundai's troubling history of failing to cooperate to the best of its ability."
The following lawsuits were recently filed at the Court of International Trade: