Antidumping petitioner SSAB Enterprises argued that the Commerce Department was justified in using partial adverse facts available against respondent Salzgitter Flachstahl due to the company's failure to cooperate to the best of its ability. While Salzgitter said it couldn't submit certain requested information because one of its affiliated resellers, Salzgitter Mannesmann Stahlhandel, didn't keep that information, SSAB said that "Salzgitter cannot rely on" Salzgitter Mannesmann's "sloppy recordkeeping as a valid excuse to justify its failure to provide Commerce with the requested manufacturer information" (AG der Dillinger Huttenwerke v. United States, Fed. Cir. # 24-1219).
The statute on deemed liquidation for drawback claims "doesn't make sense as written," Judge Jane Restani said during April 18 oral arguments at the Court of International Trade. She said that both importer Performance Additives and the government are "adding terms to the statutes that aren't there," but said she understands because "none of this can work if we just read the words that are there" (Performance Additives v. United States, CIT # 22-00044).
The Commerce Department abused its discretion by denying an exporter’s supplemental questionnaire extension request amid the COVID-19 pandemic’s 2021 delta variant wave, Court of International Trade Judge Stephen Vaden ruled April 25. He pointed out that, by the time of the rejection, three of Simec’s key accountants had died of the disease and a fourth was "hospitalized and intubated."
The Court of International Trade on April 25 reversed the use of adverse facts available for Mexican rebar exporter Simec after the exporter couldn't provide certain downstream sales information by a supplemental questionnaire deadline. Judge Stephen Vaden said the Commerce Department abused its discretion by denying Simec’s timely extension request amid the COVID-19 pandemic, pointing out that three of Simec’s key accountants had died and a fourth had been intubated.
The Court of International Trade on April 24 sustained CBP's finding on remand that importer Columbia Aluminum Products didn't evade the antidumping and countervailing duty orders on aluminum extrusions from China. But Judge Timothy Stanceu rejected Columbia's claim that CBP needed to immediately terminate the interim measures issued under the Enforce and Protect Act after reversing its original evasion finding.
Hemp cones, tubes and wraps marketed for use with “tobacco-free herbal blends” and featuring warning statements that they shouldn’t be used with illegal drugs or tobacco aren’t restricted merchandise and may be imported into the U.S., CBP said in a recent ruling.
The United States asked for 14 more days to file its reply brief in an appeal at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on the validity of the Commerce Department's non-market economy policy in antidumping duty cases. The government said it needs more time to prepare its draft brief and receive input from DOJ "supervisory counsel" and Commerce attorneys (Jilin Forest Industry Jinqiao Flooring Group Co. v. United States, Fed. Cir. # 23-2245).
The Court of International Trade on April 24 sustained CBP's decision on remand to find that importer Columbia Aluminum Products didn't evade the antidumping and countervailing duty orders on aluminum extrusions from China, but held that CBP wasn't required to immediately reverse the interim measures on the company upon making a negative remand finding. Judge Timothy Stanceu said that the remand decision "is not in effect prior to the court's sustaining it through the entry of judgment."
The Court of International Trade on April 22 sent back the Commerce Department's decision not to attribute subsidies received by lumber suppliers to respondents in an expedited countervailing duty review on Canadian softwood lumber. Judge Mark Barnett said that if Commerce continues to find that the respondents are the producers of the subject lumber, the agency must reconsider its decision to require an upstream subsidy allegation for lumber purchases within the class of covered merchandise.
Importer MKI Enterprise Group, doing business as Winbo USA, filed a complaint at the Court of International Trade on April 22 to contest CBP's denial of a Section 301 exclusion for its entries of "steel side protective attachments for motor vehicles, specifically side bars, fern bars, and bars" from China (MKI Enterprise Group v. United States, CIT # 22-00131).