With CBP regulations on new drawback procedures still not issued, software developers are growing concerned about whether they will be ready for the new system’s upcoming deployment in ACE. CBP has pledged to have capabilities in place for the new Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act drawback provisions on Feb. 24, but though the agency has found funding and begun its own programming efforts, software developers have been unable to start coding, leaving little time for testing before the deadline, several developers said in interviews.

The following lawsuits were filed at the Court of International Trade during the week of Sept. 25 - Oct. 1:

The Court of International Trade will end its reserve calendar procedures, in a change to its rules that takes effect Oct. 23. The amendment to CIT rule 83 creates a new “Customs Case Management Calendar” for challenges of protests denied by CBP, with a hard 24-month time limit, extendable to 48 months, unless the case is assigned, a complaint is filed, the case is consolidated, the case is suspended under a test case, or the case is voluntarily dismissed.

Full deployment of export manifest capabilities in ACE is expected to automatically connect manifest and export commodity filings, and should help resolve current disputes between freight forwarders and carriers regarding responsibility for filing and correlating those different information sets, government officials said Oct. 3 during a Bureau of Industry and Security export control policy conference. CBP recently expanded pre-departure export manifest filing pilots for exports in ACE to more participants, and extended the testing periods to Aug. 10, 2018, for air cargo, Sept. 21, 2018, for vessel cargo and Oct. 9, 2018, for rail cargo (see 1708110020).

The World Trade Organization recently posted the following notices:​

SolarWorld is suggesting that the International Trade Commission recommend to the White House both a tariff and quota on crystalline silicon photovoltaic (CSPV) cells, and is supporting Suniva’s request for an initial price floor of $0.74 per watt, according to documents filed with the ITC. The ITC on Sept. 22 announced an affirmative injury determination in its Section 201 safeguard investigation on CSPV cells (see 1709220044). The investigation now moves to a remedy phase, wherein the ITC will hold a hearing on Oct. 3 to determine what remedies, if any, should be proposed, and is expected to send the president its final report of potential recommendations for remedial action by Nov. 13.

A customs broker may seek indemnification from an importer client during a Court of International Trade penalty case, even if the broker’s terms and conditions specify a different court for any lawsuits related to the broker’s services, the Court of International Trade said in a Sept. 29 decision. CIT has jurisdiction to hear all cross-claims for relief from liability on entries subject to a trade case, so UPS Supply Chain Solutions may sue its importer client Majestic Mills as part of a government penalty case related to entries on which UPS acted as broker, it said.

The following new requests for antidumping and countervailing duty scope rulings were filed with the Commerce Department since International Trade Today's last update:​

The following lawsuits were filed at the Court of International Trade during the week of Sept. 18-24:

An inventor formerly based in Pennsylvania requests a Tariff Act Section 337 ban on imports of dynamic random access memory devices by SK hynix that he says copy his patented designs. In a complaint filed Sept. 18, Wen Lin said SK hynix is importing and selling infringing DRAM devices in the form of an integrated circuit. Lin requests a limited exclusion order and cease and desist order banning import and sale of infringing DRAM devices by SK hynix. He pledges to donate any licensing fees stemming from the case to charity. The International Trade Commission seeks comments by Oct. 2, it said in Friday's Federal Register. SK hynix didn't comment.