InterDigital appealed to the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit an International Trade Commission determination to terminate the Section 337 patent investigation of certain wireless devices with 3G capabilities and components thereof (337-TA-800) with respect to respondent LG. The ITC’s investigation is still pending, and completion is targeted for June 28, 2013. The ITC terminated the investigation with respect to LG on July 6 based on an arbitration clause in a license agreement, despite InterDigital’s opposition.
A Miami-based ship surveyor was sentenced to 21 months in prison for lying to the Coast Guard and falsely certifying that inspections had been carried out on two ships, the Department of Justice said Aug. 29. The inspections were designed to ensure that the ships were seaworthy and didn't pose a threat to the crew or the marine environment, said Ignacia Moreno, assistant attorney general for the environment and natural resources division.
Japan's Nippon Seiki Co. agreed to plead guilty and to pay a $1 million criminal fine for a conspiracy to fix prices of instrument panel clusters installed in cars. According to a one-count felony charge, Nippon Seiki engaged in conspiracies to rig bids for, and to fix, stabilize and maintain the prices of instrument panel clusters, from at least as early as April 2008 until at least February 2010. Including Nippon Seiki, eight companies and 11 executives have been charged in the department's ongoing investigation into price fixing and bid rigging in the auto parts industry, Justice said.
Hubbell Inc. filed an appeal of the International Trade Commission’s ruling in the section 337 patent investigation of certain ground fault circuit interrupters and products containing same, according to documents on the website of the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. In May, the ITC issued a general exclusion order and cease and desist orders blocking imports of the merchandise at issue. Petitions for review of the ITC determination have also been filed by Leviton Manufacturing Co. (CAFC Docket No. 2012-1483) and by Fujian Hongan Electric Co., Ltd. and Zhejiang Trimone Science & Technology Electric Co., Ltd.(CAFC Docket No. 2012-1493).
Indian producer Essar Steel appealed the Court of International Trade’s June ruling in U.S. Steel Corporation v. U.S. (Slip Op. 12-91), according to a Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit docketing notice. Essar’s antidumping rate grew from 5.22% to 9.01% as a result of CIT’s ruling, which arose from U.S. Steel and Nucor’s challenge of the final results of the 2005-06 administrative review of the antidumping duty order on certain hot-rolled carbon steel flat products (A-533-820). At issue in the ruling were adjustments to cost of production for Essar’s duty drawback and corrections of ministerial errors made by the International Trade Administration. The appealed decision sustained the ITA’s second remand redetermination.
A Hong Kong-based jewelry exporter pleaded guilty Aug. 24 to customs fraud and faces nearly $2 million in fines and restitution in a scheme discovered by CBP’s Regulatory Audit Unit, said Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Fai Po Jewellery (H.K.) Co. admitted to intentionally submitting false invoices to the government in connection with the importation of merchandise in order to avoid paying more than $1 million in customs duties, ICE said. The company was ordered to pay an $800,000 criminal fine and restitution of $1,017,737. Additionally, the company was ordered to pay the cost of the investigation in the amount of $144,324 and was placed on three years' probation.
The Court of International Trade affirmed the International Trade Administration’s decision to rescind a new shipper review of the antidumping order on wooden bedroom furniture from China (A-570-890) with respect to Chinese company Marvin Furniture (Shanghai) Co. In its request for the new shipper review, Marvin had told the ITA that its first entries of subject merchandise to the U.S. occurred in June 2011. But after the ITA initiated the review, CBP found earlier entries of subject merchandise from Marvin. Given this new information, the ITA rescinded the new shipper review because Marvin’s review request did not meet the statutory requirements.
The Fresh Garlic Producers Association (FGPA) filed an appeal of the Court of International Trade’s June 11 ruling in Jinxiang Hejia Co. v. United States, according to an Aug. 22 Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit docketing notice. In the appealed ruling, CIT affirmed the zero AD rate assigned to Chinese plaintiff Jinxiang Heija Co. in the second remand redetermination of a new shipper review of the antidumping duty order on fresh garlic from China (A-570-831). The International Trade Administration originally assigned Jinxiang Hejia an AD rate of 15.37%. At issue in the decision was the ITA’s use of price data when calculating surrogate values.
A civil engineer with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Christopher Castillo, 33, of Monte Alto, Texas, pleaded guilty to one count of bribery in a case involving a CBP building in southern Texas, the Justice Department said. Castillo, who supervised projects in the Southern District of Texas, admitted he received a new concrete driveway from the owner of the company working on the building. The owner said he was afraid to refuse because Castillo could prevent him from getting government contracts. The project had an estimated value of $80,000. Castillo will face a maximum of 15 years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine. Sentencing is set for Nov. 28, 2012.
In section 337 patent cases, the party attempting to establish that a patent is invalid because of prior invention bears the burden of proving the prior invention indeed came first, said the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in reversing part of an International Trade Commission determination. According to CAFC, when the dates of conception or notification of the invention overlap, the tie goes to the complainant in validity determinations in section 337 cases.