Section 232 Refund Repayments in Transpacific Case Either on the Way or Paid

The refunds issued to parties that challenged President Donald Trump's Section 232 steel and aluminum tariff hike on Turkish steel are either back in the government's hands or on their way, the litigants told the Court of International Trade in a joint status report (Transpacific Steel LLC, et al. v. United States, CIT #19-00009).

The case, originally brought by Transpacific Steel, originally argued that the tariff hike was illegal since it was made beyond the 105-day time frame for action set out in the statute. CIT agreed with the plaintiffs, but the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit did not. The appellate court then held that the president can take such measures as long as the moves belong to a plan of action that is in line with the original purpose of the tariffs (see 2107130059). As a result of the Federal Circuit's mandate, the trade court ordered that the plaintiffs pay back the refunds they were granted due to the initial CIT opinion.

The joint status report told the trade court the state of the refunds. Transpacific Steel and plaintiff-intervenor Jordan International were told that their entries were reliquidated on Dec. 3 after their refunds were repaid. Plaintiff-intervenors Borusam Manesmann Pipe US and Borusan Mannesmann Boru Sanayi, on the other hand, are working to fully comply with the CIT's final judgment and are "working towards the completion of the repayment as soon as practicable."