Administrative Law

Gilda Toasts US in Court

Posted on June 24, 2009
Gilda Industries v. U.S. has been going on for a while now. The underlying issue is whether the U.S. properly assessed retaliatory duties on Gilda's imported toasted breads as part of the EC-Beef Hormones dispute. In this version of the case, Gilda is claiming that the authority to impose those duties expired in 2007 and it wants a refund of duties it improperly paid...

Late News: Canada Rulings/Tire Decision

Posted on June 19, 2009
At the moment, I am continuing my tour of places called St. John. St. John, USVI, is one of my very favorite places on the planet. A few years ago, I was thrilled to get an invitation from the CBA to speak in Saint John's and only slighted disappointed to discover it was not the Caribbean Bar but the Canadian Bar talking about a meeting in St...

Questions Predominate in HTSUS Classification

Posted on June 16, 2009
Value Vinyls, Inc. is an interesting classification case in that it all turns on the meaning of one word. As Groucho might say, it's a simple word you hear every day (well maybe not every day). The word in question is "predominate." Specifically, item 3921...

Quick Updates

Posted on June 12, 2009
While I hate to do this, I also know that I don't have time to blog all these stories. Plus, there is no reason for me to summarize what is easily digested. So, here is a page slap. Feel free to complain in the comments.The fight to bear knives continues...

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Sometimes, it's Just a Screw

Posted on June 11, 2009
I started my career in as a customs lawyer under the old Tariff Schedule of the United States, before anything was Harmonized. Under the TSUS, it was a common and legally sound argument that merchandise could not be classified in a heading if it was "more than" what that heading describes...

Heartland Retroactive

Posted on June 11, 2009
Heartland By-Products is a case that has generated more controversy and new law than most.To make sense of what follows, you need to understand how appeals work at the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. After all the briefing and oral arguments, the CAFC announces its decision, usually in a written opinion...

Small Business Trade Bill

Posted on June 09, 2009
The Chair of the Senate's Committee on Small Business has introduced the Small Business International Trade Enhancements Act of 2009.  So far, I can't  find the text on line, but the link goes to the Committee press release.  This link should work when the text is available...

Lots of Legislation

Posted on June 06, 2009
There are a few things making their way through Congress that might be of interest. H.R. 2355 MOVEMENT ActFirst of all, how hard does Congress work to come up with these catchy acronyms? This one is the Making Opportunities Via Efficient and More Effective National Transportation Act of 2009...

Counterfeits Transitting Alaska Seized in Mexico

Posted on June 01, 2009
Here's an involved story.It seems a ship arrived in Alaska with three containers of shoes from Hong Kong headed for Guatemala and Nicaragua via Mexico.  The shoes were not to be taken from the ship in the U.S., which makes them FROB (Freight Remaining on Board)...

Where's My Casket From?

Posted on June 01, 2009
That's a rhetorical question, because I don't care.  Whatever box my family puts me in will be just fine.  And, just so you see where I am headed, it strikes me that the dearly departed is the ultimate consumer of the casket.In the May 29 Bulletin (see page 72), Customs and Border Protection revoked prior rulings on the country of origin marking of burial caskets...

I'm a "Must Read" Blogger

Posted on June 01, 2009
The 3 Geeks and a Law Blog put together an early list of "must read" blog posts of 2009.  I made the list twice, at number 40 and and number 64 for my musings on what to look for in a new Commission of Customs and Border Protection and on C-TPAT marketing...

House Action to Modern Export Controls

Posted on May 26, 2009
On May 20, the House Foreign Affairs Committee passed legislation that, in part, would modernize U.S. export control policy.  The bill seeks to both improve national security and also permit more defense-related foreign sales.  The bill also seeks to eliminate the backlog of pending State Department license applications...

Lawyer Down, Call 911

Posted on May 21, 2009
I road my bike to work today.  It was a nice ride in, even though I am still not going from garage to garage.  Here's what today's route looks like according to the cool tools at Bicycling.com.  The numbers are mile markers.Everything went smoothly until I got to the actual bike room in my building...

No Going Back for HMT, MPF Drawback

Posted on May 19, 2009
This is sort of a follow up to the American Petroleum Institute meeting at which I covered case law developments of note to the industry.  At the meeting Bobby (and you all know Bobby who) talked about the then-pending in the Federal Circuit case Aectra Refining & Marketing v...

Salmon Case Continues Upstream Battle

Posted on May 15, 2009
The effort to force Customs and Border Protection to enforce the requirements of the Endangered Species Act with respect to certain salmon imported from Canada has been a tough swim upstream against a swift procedural current.  [Note to self: no more extended metaphors...

Ship Repairs Are Merchandise

Posted on May 15, 2009
This for for all you carriers, ship owners, and yachters out there.General practice and business lawyers often overlook customs and trade law as a practice area. Even those in the practice think of it as a narrow field.  But, an odd thing about customs and trade law is that even within the narrow confines of the practice, there are sub-specialties...

Yacht Needs a New Decorator

Posted on May 14, 2009
I realize that I have been light on substance of late.  I blame a lack of particularly interesting news. I do have a court case or two to blog.  Plus, I am mulling over whether I think it is a good idea to set up a prior disclosure process for importers of goods violating U...

That's Not Good for the Resume

Posted on May 13, 2009
Times are tough.  If you are lucky enough to be starting a new job, a really bad way to make a first impression is to get arrested on the way to work.  It's worse if you are arrested allegedly trying to smuggle business-related material into the United States...

Trade-Related Indictments

Posted on May 07, 2009
Here is every honest importer's nightmare: indictments for trade related activities. While we owe these soon-to-be defendants the presumption of innocence, let's be clear about the fact that these were not your work-a-day importers.Qi Gui Nie of Charlotte, North Carolina is the winner of the most recent indictment under the Lacey Act...

Is the Court of International Trade in a Bind(er)?

Posted on May 04, 2009
Sorry, I feel like I am on a stupid-title roll.Here is another classification decision form the CIT.  It's one of those cases where there is a lot of history that makes the decision more complicated than it really should have been.  The case is Global Sourcing Group v...

Has the Court of International Trade Gone Nuts?

Posted on May 04, 2009
No.  I just say that to amuse the 12-year old boy inside me.  In reality, the Court did issue an opinion on the classification of Mrs. May's All Natural Almond Crunch, which is made in China from California almonds.  The almonds are sent to China for various processes including sorting, roasting, and combining with other ingredients for make the crunch...

UPDATE: Supreme Court Acts on FCC Fines

Posted on May 04, 2009
This really does not belong on this blog.  However, I previously blogged about the core administrative analysis in the Third Circuit's decision tossing out the FCC penalty against CBS for the famous wardrobe malfunction.  Well, by way of update, the Supreme Court has ruled that the Third Circuit is wrong and that the FCC acted within its power when it changed its enforcement policy...

The Winkowski Job

Posted on April 29, 2009
FYI, if you get an e-mail from Assistance Commission of Customs and Border Protection Thomas Winkowski stating that CBP intercepted a diplomat carrying a sack of money consisting of your inheritance from a long-lost (and apparently foreign) relative, press delete...

Second Front on Mexico Trucks

Posted on April 29, 2009
A Mexican truckers association has filed a claim under Chapter 11 of the NAFTA seeking damages for the U.S. failure to open its market to Mexico-domiciled truckers.  The original notice of a demand for arbitration was filed April 2, 2009.  [Tip to Todd at www...

CVD for Vietman?

Posted on April 27, 2009
Historically, countervailing duties were not applied to so-called "non-market economies." Basically, NME's are communist or socialist countries where the economy is centrally controlled rather than acting at the whims of the marketplace as it usually does in free-market economies...

Is it Time for a New GSP?

Posted on April 24, 2009
Several organizations ranging from non-governmental relief agencies to retailers have written to USTR Ron Kirk suggesting first that the USTR pursue early renewals for all U.S. unilateral preferences to support the world's poorest countries.  The letter also suggests that the Generalized System of Preferences and other unilateral trade programs such as AGOA be combined into one simple, unified preference program for all developing countries that meet clear eligibility standards...

My Ironic Carbon Footprint

Posted on April 24, 2009
Today, for the first time this year, I rode my bike to work.  Well, sort of.I haven't been great about getting exercise in the now officially over off season.  So, I was leery of just heading out of my garage for the office.  From door to desk, it is 20 miles...

No New NAFTA Negotiations

Posted on April 23, 2009
I think I already tweeted this (www.twitter.com/customslawblog).  I'm finding it difficult to figure out what to blog and what to just tweet.  Tweets are more toss-off little items that don't merit a blog post.  On the other hand, sometimes a simple link to some news item is important and should get a blog post...

NYT: Drugs in the FAST Lane

Posted on April 23, 2009
Another example of a shipment of illegal drugs from Mexico coming through via the Free And Secure Trade channels.  These are important examples of two things.  First, CBP being alert and doing its job by finding these attempts at smuggling.  Second, the fact that ultimately C-TPAT, FAST, and other trusted shipper programs depend upon people...

Overdue Updates

Posted on April 22, 2009
I promised to get back to you on two things that I did not do.  I've been criticized in blog comments before for this, and I realize I should be careful about it.  On the other hand, it is my blog and sometimes I lose interest in something.I have updated my post on the decision regarding the Byrd Amendment by adding a comment summarizing the dissenter's analysis...

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