A Feb. 24 Court of International Trade decision could result in "inching toward a saner and more legally sound approach to origin determinations" involving the substantial transformation test, customs lawyer Larry Friedman of Barnes Richardson said in a blog post Feb. 24. The language in the decision is "generally favorable for a simplified and more reasonable approach to origin," after years of focus on pre-determined end use of assembled components following the trade court's unappealed 2016 decision in Energizer.
Neither importer Cyber Power Systems (USA) Inc. nor the U.S. succeeded in persuading the Court of International Trade that their side was right in a tiff over the country of origin for shipments of uninterruptible power supplies and a surge voltage protector. Judge Leo Gordon, in a Feb. 24 order, denied both parties' motions for judgment, ordering the litigants to pick dates on which to set up a trial.
A flexible packaging material imported by Amcor Flexibles Kreuzlingen is classifiable as "other" backed aluminum foil, rather than aluminum foil decorated with a pattern or design, the Court of International Trade said in a Feb. 22 decision. Judge Gary Katzmann said that since the text on the foil is communicative text and not a pattern, Amcor's suggested alternative Harmonized Tariff Schedule subheading was the proper one, though he rejected the HTS heading most preferred by Amcor.
The following lawsuits were filed at the Court of International Trade during the week of Feb. 7-13:
The following lawsuits were filed at the Court of International Trade during the week of Jan. 31-Feb. 6:
The following lawsuits were filed at the Court of International Trade during the week of Jan. 24-30:
The following lawsuits were filed at the Court of International Trade during the week of Jan. 17-23:
The following lawsuits were filed at the Court of International Trade during the week of Jan. 10-16:
The following lawsuits were filed at the Court of International Trade during the week of Dec. 27 - Jan. 2:
Auto parts and tools exported to Canada for use at auto races then re-imported don't qualify for duty-free treatment under a U.S. goods returned tariff provision for "tools of the trade," said the Court of International Trade in a Dec. 30 opinion. Though Porsche Motorsport North America contended that the goods were exported to support race teams, CIT Judge Stephen Vaden found that the auto parts and tools were exported to generate sales to race teams rather than for a professional purpose, as required under subheading 9801.00.8500.