Akin Gump Files Latest Section 301 Lawsuit on Behalf of LG Chem

Of the roughly 3,700 complaints filed since Sept. 10 at the U.S. Court of International Trade seeking to have the Section 301 Lists 3 and 4A tariff rulemakings vacated and the duties refunded (see 2009110041), about 140 have come since Sept. 24. That’s the two-year anniversary of List 3 taking effect and was within the statute of limitations that many lawyers cited under court rules to establish the timeliness of their actions. A plaintiff must file an action within two years "after the cause of action accrues," say court rules. Lawyers in the subsequent actions will try to establish that the clock started when their importer clients first paid the tariffs. Recent complaints have been trickling in at the rate of about one a day, the latest (in Pacer) on Monday from LG Chem and four other importers from various industries. LG is trying to defeat the List 4A tariffs on the lithium-ion batteries it imports from China under the 8507.60.00 subheading. Akin Gump is handling the case for LG and argues the List 4A statute of limitations doesn’t expire until Aug. 20, two years after List 4A was announced in the Federal Register. Akin Gump was behind the first-filed complaint on behalf of HMTX Industries and Jasco Products.