The International Trade Commission is asking for submissions on public interest issues in a Section 337 case concerning electrical connectors and cages (ITC Inv. No. 337-TA-1241). The request follows a March 11 initial determination and March 28 recommendation on remedy by Administrative Law Judge Monica Bhattacharyya. The case began with a December 2020 complaint by Amphenol that alleged infringement of five of Amphenol's patents by Luxshare. Amphenol requested a limited exclusion order and cease and desist orders on certain electrical connectors and cages imported by Luxshare. Comments are due April 27.
The Court of International Trade dismissed a case brought by the U.S. government seeking the collection of over $5.7 million in unpaid duties from Katana Racing on passenger vehicle and light truck tires from China. In a March 28 opinion, Judge Thomas Aquilino granted Katana's motion to dismiss based on an expired statute of limitations. The judge ruled that Katana was allowed to revoke an earlier statute of limitations waiver and concluded that without the waiver, any action by CBP is barred by the passage of time (United States v. Katana Racing Inc., d/b/a Wheel & Tire Distributors, CIT #19-00125).
The Court of International Trade ruled that CBP properly classified eight models of gloves imported by Magid Glove & Safety Manufacturing Co. as knit textile gloves, rather than as gloves made of plastics. In a March 25 opinion, Judge Timothy Stanceu sided with the government and ruled CBP correctly classified the gloves imported from China and South Korea in 2015 and correctly denied Magid's 2016 CBP protest (Magid Glove & Safety Manufacturing Co. v. United States, CIT #16-00150).
The submission or completion of CBP and Department of Defense forms related to imports of household goods and personal effects constitutes "customs business" and requires any third-party filers to be licensed customs brokers, the agency said in September ruling that was recently released. The ruling came in response to an internal CBP information request from the Port of Baltimore on the requirements for the submission of CBP forms 3461, 7501, 3299, and DOD Form 1252.
The government can seek reclassification of an importer's merchandise in court at a higher duty rate, even when CBP didn't previously pursue the rate increase against the importer, DOJ said in March 15 brief in support of its counterclaim in a tariff classification suit brought by Cyber Power -- which says the counterclaim sets a dangerous precedent (Cyber Power Systems (USA) Inc. v. United States, CIT #21-00200).
The International Trade Commission initiated a Section 337 investigation March 9 into barcode scanners and related devices with scanning capabilities (ITC Inv. No. 337-TA-1307). The investigation follows a Feb. 7 complaint (amended Feb. 25) by Zebra Technologies and Symbol Technologies (see 2202140017), alleging that Honeywell and its subsidiary Hand Held Products are importing barcode scanners, computers with barcode scanning capabilities, and scan engines that infringe on one of Zebra's and two of Symbol's patents. The complainants are seeking a limited exclusion order and cease and desist orders.
A Mexican factory that was shut down by the government doesn't need to include costs incurred during the time it was inoperative in the parent company's computed value calculations, CBP said in a newly released Jan. 7 ruling. The facility, which is owned by Chamberlain, was shut down in March 2020 by state authorities in Sonora, Mexico, as part of an emergency decree closing all nonessential businesses in response to COVID-19. CBP's ruling hinged on the fact that the costs incurred during the time of the government-mandated shutdown were "not employed in the production of the imported merchandise."
The International Trade Commission initiated a Section 337 investigation March 7 into barcode scanners and related devices with scanning capabilities (ITC Inv. No. 337-TA-1306). The investigation follows a Feb. 4 complaint (amended Feb. 25) by Zebra Technologies and Symbol Technologies (see 2202140017), alleging that Honeywell and its subsidiary Hand Held Products are importing barcode scanners, computers with barcode scanning capabilities, and scan engines that infringe on one of Zebra's and two of Symbol's patents. The complainants are seeking a limited exclusion order and cease and desist orders.
CBP recently ruled that imports of men's suits from an Italian parent company to its related U.S. importer didn't qualify for first sale treatment. In a ruling issued Jan. 4 and released March 7, the agency said that transactions between factory and parent company and between parent company and importer don't qualify as "sales" and that the transaction value between the importer and its U.S. customers should instead be used to value the merchandise. The ruling followed a request for internal advice from the CBP Validation and Compliance Division as to how to correctly appraise the suits.
The International Trade Commission initiated a Section 337 investigation Feb. 14 into networking devices. The investigation follows a Jan. 12 complaint by Proven Networks, LLC (see 2201180035), alleging that Netapp is improperly importing networking devices that infringe on one of Proven's patents. Proven Networks seeks a limited exclusion order and cease and desist orders.