Customs Law

The Lacey Act , as you likely know, prohibits the international movement of plants and animals that were harvested illegally. Typically, a violation involves a company that imported wood or wood products for use in production or for resale. Less commonly, by which I mean never until just now, does the violation involve the importation of parts of wild mountain sheep from Kyrgyzstan as part of a plot to clone the sheep to produce breeding males to make hybrid giant sheep for private hunting in Montana. That real live plot, recently noted in a Department of Justice press release , sounds like the hobby or side hustle for the villain in a James Bond movie.  Thanks to Tom B. for the tip and the nudge to do this update. The crazy facts are that the owner of an "alternative livestock ranch" in Montana violated the Lacey Act when he conspired with others to import "parts" of Marco Polo argali sheep.  These are among the largest sheep in the world and are native to the Pam...

New Image Global, Inc. v. United States is the sort of case we do not often see from the Court of International Trade. For starters, it involves excise taxes on tobacco rather than customs duties. Second, the challenge relates to Customs and Border Protection’s laboratory methodology. In the end, there is nothing groundbreaking here. It is, however, a good reminder that there are remedies available in the Court of International Trade that go beyond refunds for incorrect classifications. It also illustrates that pleadings matter. Finally, the case gives me an opportunity to go on a rant about the importance of good science in the courtroom and elsewhere. The tax at issue is applicable to tobacco products and is assessed based on weight. The plaintiff imported tobacco “wraps,” which are tobacco products used to wrap other tobacco as cigarettes or cigars. The wraps as imported were packaged to retain moisture to let them be pliable enough to use as wrappers and also contained cert...

No, this article is not about where to find a cheap copy of the Explanatory Notes to the Harmonized System. Rather, it is about the Federal Circuit decision in Sigma-Tau Healthscience, Inc. v. United States , in which the Court of Appeals discounted the legal impact of a definition in the Explanatory Notes. The case is about the classification of two stabilized forms of the chemical carnitine, which may or may not be a vitamin. Carnatine , which is also known as vitamin Bt, is not called out by name in the Tariff Schedule. Customs classified this merchandise as chemical products and preparations of the chemical or allied industries not elsewhere specified in Heading 3824. Sigma-Tau protested and asserted that the correct classification is as vitamins of 2936. Complicating matters, the Court of International Trade held that the merchandise is classifiable in Heading 2923 as "Quaternary ammonium salts and hydroxides; lecithins and other phosphoaminolipids, whether or not chemicall...

If you have been around here long enough, you know I am a skeptical guy. I believe the consensus of medical science is in a better position than the guy at the supplement store to give medical advice. I also believe that eating or drinking something with the intention of modifying the way your body works is a medical decision whether you are taking a prescription drug or a "natural" supplement. I suspect the prescription drug has a better chance of actually working as advertised than does the supplement, but both are drugs. With that in mind, I read HQ H268556 (Dec. 15, 2015), which considers the tariff classification of Kimera Koffee . This particular product is about 95% coffee, but it has been "boosted" with taurine, alpha GPC 50%, L-theanine, and DMAE (Deanol). As  result, the coffee is advertised as enhancing cognitive performance, boosting energy levels, improving focus and concentration, and enhancing athletic performance. The additives are a class of pr...

For the past couple years, I have been on the record at numerous events and in numerous publications with various ideas for how to make tariff classification litigation more efficient and, therefore, more useful for importers. There are several good ideas floating around about this. Not the least of which is the Court of International Trade's recently announced pilot program for a " small claims " process. Others have done the lion's share of the work on that. My big idea has been to promote early efforts to resolve the legal questions about how to interpret the Harmonized Tariff Schedule. My thought is that if everyone is reading the tariff the same way, the parties will know what facts matter and whether there is a real dispute. With the fact disputes eliminated or narrowed down, discovery can be focused and the parties can get to the controlling issues quickly. It's even possible that, once the parties know the meaning of the tariff terms, cases will be stipu...

By my calculation, this is week 10 of 2016 and this is ROTW 8, I am getting close. Today's ruling might make the squeamish among you go "Eww," but it shouldn't. The product in question is a three-dimensional reconstructed human epidermis. When I read that, I pictured a fully human-shaped skin ready for taxidermy or some more nefarious use. The reality is far more mundane and much more scientifically cool. The ruling is NY N270364 (February 19, 2016) . The product turns out to be an "in vitro " epidermis grown from human skin and other cells cultured on a polycarbonate substrate. Here is the technical lowdown on it. The commercial purpose of this is not to build Buffalo Bill-style human skin suits  or to give Mr. Data goosebumps. The idea is to have an in vitro model for testing drugs, cosmetics, etc. Star Trek: First Contact According to Customs, this item is classified as "Human blood . . . vaccines, toxins, cultures of micro-organisms (exc...

Is there still a trend surrounding eating raw to allegedly preserve nutrients and avoid bad karma? I never understood it, nor do I believe there is any science behind it . I remember seeing a woman on a news show talking about how the enzymes in fruit dissolve unhealthy body fat, but she could not identify the enzymes or explain the mechanism. If you tell me you are on a juice cleanse, I will do my best not to scoff. If, however, you are looking for a raw alternative to an otherwise delicious tortilla, you might try a " Pure Wrap ," which is composed mainly of coconut meat that has been pulverized into a slurry and dehydrated into flat wraps. According to the folks at the company: Pure Wraps believes that food is medicine and illness begins with nutritional deficiencies. In order to support wellness and fight disease we need clean food from a clean environment. Therefore, we are committed to unlocking the value of food by combining the ancient wisdom about nourishment...