Importer Dell Will Customs Brokers (USA) Inc. dismissed its customs case on Dec. 27 at the Court of International Trade. The company filed suit in December 2021 claiming that its scaffolding, parts or accessories, of Harmonized Tariff Schedule subheadings 7308.40.00 and 9403.20.00, are exempt from Section 301 China tariffs under secondary subheading 9903.88.03. Counsel for Dell Will didn't respond to our request for comment (Dell Will Customs Brokers (USA) Inc. F/A Metal Tech-Omega Inc. v. U.S., CIT # 21-00630).

The recent extension of over 400 Section 301 exclusions (see 2312260011) won’t be implemented in ACE until Jan. 4 at 7 a.m. EST, CBP said in a CSMS message. That means the exclusions will still expire in ACE on Jan. 1, despite the extension until May 31. Importers that enter goods that qualify for the extended exclusions between Jan. 1 and their implementation in ACE on Jan. 4 should file a post-summary correction on or after Jan. 4 “to obtain a refund of duties paid,” CBP said.

The following lawsuits were filed at the Court of International Trade during the weeks of Dec. 4-10, 11-17 and 18-24.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in a text-only order on Dec. 22 gave plaintiffs in the massive Section 301 litigation more time to file their reply brief. The plaintiffs, led by HMTX Industries and Jasco Products, now have until Feb. 12 to file their reply after counsel for the companies said they needed more time due to their "significant additional client responsibilities and obligations that substantially interfere with their ability to file the reply brief by the current deadline" (HMTX Industries v. U.S., Fed. Cir. # 23-1891).

The following are short summaries of recent CBP NY rulings issued by the agency's National Commodity Specialist Division in New York:

International Trade Today is providing readers with the top stories from last week in case they were missed. All articles can be found by searching on the titles or by clicking on the hyperlinked reference number.

Plaintiffs in the massive ongoing Section 301 litigation "ignore" the president's role in imposing the China tariffs, the U.S. said last week, arguing that the thousands of companies leading the case would have the court impose an improper standard of review (HMTX Industries v. United States, Fed. Cir. # 23-1891).

More than 400 products that are excluded from Section 301 tariffs will continue to enter under normal duties through May 31, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative announced Dec. 26. The exclusions had been scheduled to end at the end of this year.

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative is extending 77 COVID-19 related tariff exclusions as well as the 352 Section 301 exclusions that were restored in March 2022. Both sets of exclusions were set to expire Dec. 31; now they will last through May 31.

The U.S. on Dec. 20 added an attorney to the massive Section 301 litigation currently before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. The government added Megan Grimball, assistant general counsel in the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, bringing the number of government attorneys involved in the suit to nine. Grimball has worked at USTR since 2018 and, before that, as an attorney-adviser at the State Department.