In response to the government (see 2409240057), a Turkish steel exporter again said Nov. 1 that the dates of its U.S. sales should be determined by its contract dates, not the dates on its invoices (Kaptan Demir Celik Endustrisi ve Ticaret v. United States, CIT # 24-00018).
Court of International Trade
The United States Court of International Trade is a federal court which has national jurisdiction over civil actions regarding the customs and international trade laws of the United States. The Court was established under Article III of the Constitution by the Customs Courts Act of 1980. The Court consists of nine judges appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate and is located in New York City. The Court has jurisdiction throughout the United States and has exclusive jurisdictional authority to decide civil action pertaining to international trade against the United States or entities representing the United States.
The Court of International Trade in a decision made public Nov. 4 enjoined the liquidation of importer Retractable Technologies' entries of syringes during the course of its challenge to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative's Section 301 tariff hike on needles and syringes. However, Judge Claire Kelly rejected Retractable's bids for a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction on the collection of Section 301 tariffs on needles and syringes, finding that Retractable failed to show it would suffer irreparable harm if the duties are collected. The judge added that the balance of equities and public interest both weigh against taking such action.
The U.S. agreed to pay importer Dis Vintage $34,591.27 in duty refunds and interest payments in a tariff classification spat on worn clothing. The parties filed a stipulated judgment with the Court of International Trade on Nov. 1, agreeing to classify the goods under the following five subheadings: 6104.63.20, dutiable at 28.2%; 6309.00.00, free of duty; 6203.20.20, dutiable at 19.7%; 6203.43.40, dutiable at 27.9%; and 6110.30.30, dutiable at 32% (Dis Vintage v. United States, CIT # 23-00033).
Importer IKKO International Trading on Oct. 29 asked the Court of International Trade for a six-month extension, until April 30, to remain on the case management calendar. The U.S. consented to the move, which comes in a tariff classification suit on sushi ginger. IKKO said the issue is being litigated in another CIT case, Wismettac Asian Foods v. U.S., adding that it's considering asking for a stay in the present action. IKKO said it has taken longer to finalize its approach than anticipated "due to the departure from the undersigned firm of the attorney who previously had primary responsibility for this litigation" (IKKO International Trading v. U.S., CIT # 22-00119).
The Commerce Department agreed to remove a prohibition on Red Sun Energy Long An Co. that had blocked the exporter from using the agency's exclusion certification process to enter its solar cells duty-free from Vietnam. The parties filed a stipulation for judgment with the Court of International Trade on Nov. 1, ending Red Sun's challenge to Commerce's anti-circumvention finding on solar cells from Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam (Red Sun Energy Long An Co. v. United States, CIT # 23-00229).
The Commerce Department reasonably placed greater emphasis on research and development investment when it found that solar cells from Cambodia were circumventing the antidumping and countervailing duty orders on solar cells from China, the U.S. said. Filing a reply brief to the Court of International Trade on Oct. 29, the government argued that the agency "set forth uncontroverted record evidence to explain that R&D is particularly important to solar producers" and that these investments are key to "technological breakthroughs in the solar industry" (BYD (H.K.) Co. v. United States, CIT # 23-00221).
Watches that have case backs set with watch glass made of nonprecious materials -- such as synthetic sapphire -- are not considered to have cases made "wholly" of precious metal and are classified differently than watches that do, the Court of International Trade ruled Nov. 1. The holding came as a watch importer’s motion for judgment in a 2018 case wound up being denied, and the government’s was granted, by CIT Judge Jane Restani.
The U.S. once again filed a motion to dismiss a case brought by an aluminum rod importer that alleged the Commerce Department had denied a Section 232 tariff exclusion request by pointing to promises made by the importer’s domestic competitor. The U.S. called most of the importer’s claims untimely and unactionable (Prysmian Cables and Systems USA v. U.S., CIT # 24-00101).
Individual importer Timothy Brown filed a complaint on Oct. 31 at the Court of International Trade seeking nearly $20,000 in duty drawback related to the shipment of a Porsch 911 Turbo S luxury vehicle. Brown said he in 2017 imported the vehicle, which was classified under Harmonized Tariff Schedule subheading 8703.24.0190, dutiable at 2.5% (Timothy Brown v. United States, CIT # 20-03733).
Importer Tingley Rubber Corp. told the Court of International Trade that its latex rubber boot savers should be classified under Harmonized Tariff Schedule subheading 6401.99.30, dutiable at 25%, and not under subheading 6401.92.9000, dutiable at 37.5%. The company filed a complaint on Oct. 31 after initially filing its case in 2020. The company said CBP issued a HQ ruling in 2019 confirming that its boot savers properly fit under subheading 6401.99.30. Tingley's preferred subheading covers footwear that covers the knee and is designed for use without closures. Meanwhile, subheading 6401.92.90 covers other footwear that covers the ankle but not the knee (Tingley Rubber Corp. v. United States, CIT # 20-03711).