Suzanne Kane Quoted by Bloomberg Law on Denial of Steel Duty Exclusion

Bloomberg Law has quoted Akin Gump international trade partner Suzanne Kane in the article “Pipe Importer Sues Over Denial of Trump Steel Duty Exclusion.” The article reports on a lawsuit by an importer of stainless steel pipe over allegations that U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) wrongly denied the company an exclusion from more than $187,000 of Section 232 steel tariffs.

Bloomberg notes that President Trump imposed the controversial 25 percent tariffs on steel products in the name of national security, but the administration allowed importers to petition for tariff exclusions in certain circumstances. When CP-Industries Holdings LLC did just that, the article says, CBP denied the request, citing missing paperwork, which the company said it already provided.

Customs does not have much discretion in administering Section 232 exclusions, which the Commerce Department grants, said Kane. CBP is usually not in the driver’s seat but it can insist on the proper paperwork being filed to support the exclusion, she pointed out.

“What the importer is alleging is very believable,” Kane added. Importers are required to maintain and provide commercial invoices to Customs and, for a steel importer not to provide mill certificates to the agency would be unusual, she said.