The Court of International Trade's newest judge, Stephen Vaden, issued his first opinion with the court on April 21, dismissing tire importer Strategic Import Supply's challenge of CBP's assessment of countervailing duties on its imports of passenger vehicle and light truck tires from China. Vaden found that the importer's protest was filed too late, holding the 180-day deadline for protests runs from the date of liquidation, rather than the date CBP received updated assessment instructions from Commerce after Commerce amended rates set in the relevant CV duty administrative review.

Judge Kimberly Moore will become the next chief judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on May 22, the court announced in an April 21 press release. Moore, a President George W. Bush appointee in 2006, will succeed Chief Judge Sharon Prost, who has served in the role of chief judge since 2014. Prost will be statutorily unable to serve in the position when her seven-year term ends in May, a few days before her 70th birthday. The law requires the chief judge of the Federal Circuit to be under 64 years of age when assuming the role.

The following lawsuits were filed at the Court of International Trade during the week of April 12-18:

The three-judge panel in the Section 301 litigation before the U.S. Court of International Trade scheduled an April 26 status conference for 9:30 a.m. EDT, an order signed Thursday said. The conference is an apparent try at hammering out a compromise between plaintiffs and defendants over the disputed refund relief issue for importers seeking to have the lists 3 and 4A tariffs vacated. Broad disagreement separates the HMTX-Jasco plaintiffs in the sample case from the government over whether importers who prevail on the merits of the massive litigation would be entitled to tariff refunds on customs entries whose liquidations are final, according to a joint status report filed April 12 with the court (see 2104130036). The impasse had HMTX-Jasco attorneys from Akin Gump warning they would move April 22 for a declaratory judgment that the court has the authority to order refunds of liquidated entries if the plaintiffs win. They alternatively threatened to seek a court injunction to suspend liquidations on all goods from China with lists 3 and 4A tariff exposure until the litigation is resolved. Scheduling the status conference for four days after the Akin Gump deadline suggests those motions are now on hold, pending the outcome of the conference. Akin Gump and DOJ didn’t comment Friday.

The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington dismissed a Washington importer's claim that its products were unfairly denied entry to the U.S., finding instead that the case belonged in the Court of International Trade. Judge Thomas Zilly, in an April 16 order, ruled that CIT has exclusive jurisdiction for such claims as the one Keirton USA Inc. brought to the district court. “CBP argues that the Court of International Trade ('CIT') has exclusive jurisdiction over this action,” Zilly wrote. “The Court agrees.”

The following lawsuits were filed at the Court of International Trade during the week of April 5-11:

Christopher Kane, partner at Simon Gluck, expressed optimism over a recent U.S. Court of International Trade ruling striking down an extension of President Donald Trump's Section 232 tariffs to aluminum and steel derivatives (see 2104050049). He believes the ruling spells good news for the massive litigation involving more than 3,700 companies challenging the expansion of the Section 301 tariffs on goods from China. Although based on a different law, Kane believes CIT's April 5 ruling demonstrates the court's willingness to hold the president to account over laws and regulations. In the case of the derivatives, the tariff expansion was eliminated because it was imposed after a 105-day period during which the president can impose Section 232 tariffs after receiving a report on the need for the duties from the Commerce Department.

The following lawsuits were filed at the Court of International Trade during the week of March 29 - April 4:

Judge Mark Barnett has taken over as the chief judge of the U.S. Court of International Trade, following Judge Timothy Stanceu's assumption of senior status April 5 (see 2103160061), according to the court's website. Barnett joined the court in 2013 as a President Barack Obama appointee. He previously practiced in the international trade group at Steptoe & Johnson and served in the Office of Chief Counsel for Import Administration at the Commerce Department. He was the longest tenured judge at CIT at the time of Stanceu's move to senior status.

Steel parts importer Smith-Cooper International settled a False Claims Act allegation raised by Island Industries that the importer evaded antidumping duties, according to a March 29 filing in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. In 2017, Island accused SCI of failing to pay antidumping duties on its welded outlet imports from China while also alleging that SCI submitted false information to the U.S. relating to the applicability and amount of duties owed. The initial lawsuit also accused four companies and 11 individuals of violating the FCA due to duty evasion. In the joint motion to dismiss the case, the case was described as having been vigorously litigated. Now a confidential settlement between SCI and Island has been submitted and accepted by the court. Allied Rubber and Gasket Co. was dismissed from the case in August 2020 while litigation continued with the remaining parties.