CIT Denies Motion to Produce Domestic Industry Petition in Solar Panel Tariff Case

Judge Gary Katzmann denied a motion from solar panel industry groups to expedite discovery of what they believe to be a key petition in a case over the redaction of a tariff exemption for bifacial solar panels in an April 21 order. The plaintiffs asked to get the government defense to produce a “petition from a majority of the representatives of the domestic industry” upon which President Donald Trump supposedly based his decision to withdraw the tariff exemption. In denying the motion, Katzmann also stipulated that the plaintiffs have until May 5 to file their response to the Department of Justice's motion to dismiss the case.

The lawsuit arose after the Solar Energy Industries Association sought to invalidate a presidential proclamation reimposing solar safeguard duties on bifacial panels. Joined by Invenergy Renewables, NextEra Energy and EDF Renewables, the SEIA said Trump failed to follow the requirements of the safeguard laws when he issued the proclamation. Invenergy had successfully challenged the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative's earlier attempts to withdraw of the exemption in a previous lawsuit.