Cannabis industry companies should take stock of their import supply chains and CBP clearance procedures in the wake of actions against shippers for undervaluing merchandise, law firm Neville Peterson said in a Jan. 2 blog post. While undervaluation for cannabis-related goods "may have gone undetected due to CBP's unfamiliarity with" the products, CBP is "moving up a learning curve," allowing for easier detection and greater due diligence for importers, the post said.
Importers of cannabis-related goods should seek customs rulings to "interpret the laws of every State that has repealed prior prohibitions" pertaining to cannabis paraphernalia to better facilitate the importation of these goods, law firm Neville Peterson said in a blog post.
Action camera maker GoPro Inc.'s camera housings are camera parts and not cases, the Court of International Trade ruled Dec. 28, allowing them to enter the U.S. duty-free.
The following lawsuits were filed at the Court of International Trade during the weeks of Dec. 4-10, 11-17 and 18-24.
A ban on imports of Apple watches is on hold, after the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on Dec. 27 granted Apple's bid for an interim stay of the International Trade Commission's import ban in a patent dispute concerning the watches' medical monitoring technology (Apple Inc. v. U.S. International Trade Commission, Fed. Cir. # 24-1285).
China issued new export restrictions on four products this week, according to an unofficial translation of a Ministry of Commerce announcement. The four items are cell cloning and gene editing technology for human use, crop hybrid advantage utilization technology, "bulk material handling and transportation technology," and lidar systems.
Pencil importer Royal Brush Manufacturing was required to file protests before it could challenge CBP's allegedly improper liquidations under an Enforce and Protect Act antidumping duty evasion investigation, the Court of International Trade ruled on Dec. 15. Dismissing the company's case for lack of jurisdiction, Judge Mark Barnett echoed the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit's ruling in Juice Farms v. U.S. in ruling that "all liquidations, whether legal or not, are subject to the timely protest requirement."
Furniture company Homestar North America will pay $798,334 to settle charges that it violated the False Claims Act by underreporting the value of its Chinese imports to avoid customs duties, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Texas announced. Of the total penalty, $151,683 will go to the whistleblower in the action: Larry Edwards, a logistics and warehouse manager who worked for Homestar for a short stint in 2020.
Dallas-based importer ADCO Industries, also known as Dallco Marketing, settled charges that it violated the False Claims Act by avoiding customs duties on Chinese industrial product imports, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Texas announced. The company agreed to pay $2.5 million to settle the whistleblower action, with $500,000 going to whistleblowers Donald Reznicek and Collen McFarland.
Ghacham Inc., a Paramount, California-based wholesale clothing company operating under the Platini brand, was ordered to pay a $4 million fine and nearly $6.4 million in restitution for undervaluing its garment imports to avoid paying millions of dollars in customs duties, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Central District of California announced Dec. 8. The penalty, which also includes a five-year probationary period, was also levied for Ghacham's work with a woman tied to Mexico's Sinaloa drug cartel.