Steel Importers Settle Lawsuits on Denied Section 232 Exclusions, Will Get Refunds

A steel importer will receive refunds of Section 232 tariffs under a settlement that resolves its legal challenge of denied exclusion requests. Approved Oct. 15 by the Court of International Trade, the settlement directs CBP to reliquidate some entries covered by exclusions Borusan Mannesman Pipe U.S. had alleged were improperly denied by the Commerce Department. The government did not admit liability under the settlement.

The settlement agreement does not say how much Borusan will receive. Reached by email, the company’s lawyers said the amount is confidential. Only some entries covered by the denied exclusions appear to be marked for reliquidation under the settlement, with others remaining subject to Section 232 tariffs.

In a complaint filed in January, Borusan alleged Commerce relied on incomplete and inaccurate statements in objections from other steel producers to find that the company’s imports could be replaced by domestic production and should not be excluded from Section 232 duties (see 2001220016). In June, CIT granted the government’s request to reopen Commerce’s decision to deny the exclusions and add new information to the record of the proceeding.

The Texas-based subsidiary of a Turkish multinational, Borusan had been one of three importers to file lawsuits at the Court of International Trade challenging the denial of its Section 232 exclusions. JSW Steel, which had also alleged Commerce improperly relied on off-the-record conversations with domestic industry that it failed to disclose, reached a similar settlement with the government in September. NLMK, a Russian steel company, has reached an agreement in principle to settle its own exclusion lawsuit, though the settlement is not yet final, according to a recent court filing.

Like Borusan’s settlement, JSW Steel’s references two groups of entries, an “Attachment A” and an “Attachment B.” Sandy Litvack of Chaffetz Lindsey, who represented JSW Steel in the case, said by email that the settlement only covers the first group of entries. Both settlements say the government must pay interest that has accrued on the refunds. Both importers must bear their own attorney’s fees and costs, CIT said as it dismissed the lawsuits.

Email ITTNews@warren-news.com for a copy of the settlement agreements.