Section 301 Complaint Filings at CIT Slow to a Trickle
Complaint filings at the Court of International Trade seeking to have the Section 301 lists 3 and 4A tariff rulemakings vacated and the duties refunded (see 2009210025) slowed to a trickle in November, with fewer than 10 filed within the last two weeks. Of the roughly 3,700 complaints filed since Sept. 10, about 140 have been filed since Sept. 24. That’s the two-year anniversary date of List 3 taking effect and was within the statute of limitations that many lawyers cited under court rules to establish the timeliness of their actions. A plaintiff must file an action within two years “after the cause of action accrues,” court rules say. Lawyers in the subsequent actions will try to establish that the clock started when their importer clients first paid the tariffs.
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LG Chem and four other importers from various industries filed the most recent case on Nov. 16. LG is trying to defeat the List 4A tariffs on the lithium-ion batteries it imports from China under tariff schedule subheading 8507.60.00. Akin Gump is handling the case for LG and argues that the List 4A statute of limitations doesn’t expire until Aug. 20, 2021, two years after List 4A was announced in the Federal Register. Akin Gump was behind the first-filed complaint on behalf of HMTX Industries and Jasco Products Company.