CIT Ruling Means No Protest Needed Now to Seek IEEPA Tariff Refunds, Attorneys Say
The Court of International Trade's recent decision finding that no protests are needed to file suit under Section 1581(i) seeking refunds from tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act "applies solely to pending court cases at this time," said attorneys at Grunfeld Desiderio. Protests may have to be filed if the Supreme Court strikes down the tariffs and CBP has not taken other steps to effect relief.
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The trade court's ruling from the court came as part of its decision not to enjoin liquidation of various plaintiffs' entries in cases seeking IEEPA refunds (see 2512150029). Judges Gary Katzmann, Timothy Reif and Jane Restani noted the government said it won't contest court-ordered reliquidation of affected entries should the high court strike down the tariffs and held that CIT has the power to order such reliquidation, despite doubts raised by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.
Attorneys at Barnes Richardson emphasized the element of the trade court's ruling that said filing a protest at the current moment would be "futile," since all CBP is authorized to do is collect the duty. The attorneys said this means that, "for the time being, the CIT does not believe there is a basis or reason to file protests when IEEPA entries liquidate." Instead, cases would be filed under Section 1581(i), which doesn't require a protest, though this doesn't impact "other issues that might arise that need to be protested," the attorneys said.