Bluefries New York, Inc. v. United States

39 Cust. Ct. 79
United States Customs Court·Decided August 22, 1957·No. C. D. 1909·Published·Cited by 8 cases

Opinion

Wilson, Judge:

This case has been submitted to the court for disposition upon a written stipulation, the following portions of which contain the facts pertinent to our decision herein:

1. The items of merchandise covered by the above-numbered protest which are marked “A” and initialed JJO on the invoice covered by said protest were appraised * * * on the basis of American selling price * * * and upon liquida[80] tion were classified by the Collector of Customs as synthetic resin-like products under the provisions of paragraph 28 (a) * * * and duty was assessed at the compound rates of 3*4 cents per pound and 22J4 per centum ad valorem.
2. The items of merchandise marked and initialed as aforesaid are mixtures consisting in part of a product provided for in paragraph 28 of the Act and are also varnishes within the provision for "all other varnishes, * * *, not specially provided for,” in paragraph 75 of the aforementioned Tariff Act.
3. * * * jf it is found and held that paragraph 75 of the Tariff Act of 1930 providing for "all other varnishes, * * *, not specially provided for,” is more specific than the provisions for “mixtures, including solutions, consisting in whole or in part of any of the articles or materials provided for in this paragraph, excepting mixtures of synthetic odoriferous or aromatic chemicals,” in paragraph 28 (a) of the said Tariff Act, the appraisement of the merchandise here involved on the basis of American selling price was not made in accordance with provisions of law providing for the valuation basis to be used in the appraisement of imported merchandise classifiable under the provisions of paragraph 75 of the Tariff Act of 1930.
4. In such event * * * the instant matter is to be remanded for further proceedings to a single judge sitting in reappraisement pursuant to the provisions of Title 28 U. S. C. section 2636 (d), for determination of the dutiable value of the involved merchandise in the manner provided by law.
5. There are no pigments in the mixture which constitutes the items of merchandise marked and initialed as aforesaid.

The statutes involved read as follows:

Pab. 75. * * * and all other varnishes, including so-called gold size or japan, not specially provided for, 25 per centum ad valorem. [Rate reduced to 10 per centum ad valorem by the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, T. D. 51802.]
Pab. 28. Coal-tar products:
(a) * * * and all mixtures, including solutions, consisting in whole or in part of any of the articles or materials provided for in this paragraph, excepting mixtures of synthetic odoriferous or aromatic chemicals, 45 per centum ad valorem and 7 cents per pound.

The merchandise under consideration is invoiced as “SigmaVAR” and is described in defendant’s brief as “a synthetic product in liquid form which, when sprayed onto the surface of some material, hardens into a surface coating.”

The parties agree that the issue presented for decision is one of law to be resolved by determining the relative specificity of paragraphs 28 (a) and 75 of the Tariff Act of 1930 as applied to the imported merchandise.

The plaintiff and the Government also agree, in their briefs, that the provision for varnishes in paragraph 75 of the tariff act is to be construed as an eo nomine one, and not as a use provision, citing the holdings in the cases of F. W. Myers & Co., Inc. v. United States, 20 Cust. Ct. 152, C. D. 1100, and Same v. Same, 24 Cust. Ct. 178, C. D. 1228, as authorities for that construction.

Paragraph 28 (i) of the Tariff Act of 1930 provides that “Any article or product which is within the terms of paragraph 1, 5, 37, 39, 60, 66, 82, or 1687, as well as within the terms of paragraph 27, [81]*8128, or 1651, shall be assessed for duty or exempted from duty as the case may be under paragraph 27, 28, or 1651.” In United States v. Alex. Murphy & Co., 16 Ct. Cust. Appls. 461, T. D. 43210, our appellate court construed a proviso contained in paragraph 28 of the Tariff Act of 1922, substantially the same as that found in paragraph 28 (i) of the present act. The court therein, page 464, stated:

* * * The obvious purpose of inserting in the proviso the various paragraphs mentioned was to aeoomplish just what the proviso declares, namely, that in cases where the merchandise is within the mentioned paragraphs, as well as within paragraph 27, 28, or 1549, the provisions of the three last-mentioned paragraphs shall govern, but as to any other paragraph not named the terms of which may include merchandise also within said three paragraphs the more specific provision shall control. [Italics supplied.]

Accordingly, as indicated by the parties herein, and in view of the rule enunciated in the Murphy case, supra, the question here for determination concerns the relative specificity of paragraphs 75 and 28 (a) of the act as applied to the imported merchandise.

The case of United States v. Lansen-Naeve Corp., 44 C. C. P. A. (Customs) 31, C. A. D. 632, relied upon by the defendant, has no application to the issue before us. There, certain ground and polished cylindrical steel rolls, classified under paragraph 344 of the Tariff Act of 1930 as “Cylindrical steel rolls ground and polished,” were claimed properly classifiable under paragraph 372 of the act, as modified, as parts of machine tools, not specially provided for. The issue in the Lansen-Naeve Corp. case, supra, was stated by the appellate court as follows:

* * * the ease resolves itself purely into a matter of law as to which of the two provisions, supra, more aptly describes the merchandise.

The appellate court then proceeded as follows:

The lower court, invoking the principle that a use provision prevails over a descriptive or eo nomine provision, United States v. Snow’s United States Sample Express Co., 8 Ct. Cust. Appls. 351, T. D. 37611, and cases therein cited, subordinated paragraph 344, supra, to paragraph 372, holding the latter to be one for a specific use while the former is obviously descriptive.

The court then stated:

This rule, however, cannot be applied to the instant situation. The narrow issue confronting this court is not whether a use. provision should prevail over a descriptive provision, but whether a use provision qualified by a not specially provided for clause should prevail over a competing descriptive designation. [Italics quoted.]

Our appellate court, citing authorities, stated that, subject to clearly shown contrary legislative intent, a “not specially provided for” clause in a use provision excludes therefrom articles enumerated elsewhere by descriptive or eo nomine designation. It, accordingly, held that the involved steel rolls, in view of the absolute specificity of the descriptive provision, were specially provided for in paragraph 344 and should, therefore, be excluded from paragraph 372.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Bluefries New York, Inc. v. United States, 39 Cust. Ct. 79 (cusc 1957).

39 Cust. Ct. 79 (Bluefries New York, Inc. v. United States) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

Related

R. W. Smith & Co. v. United States
59 Cust. Ct. 538 (U.S. Customs Court, 1967)
Norton & Ellis, Inc. v. United States
52 Cust. Ct. 76 (U.S. Customs Court, 1964)
C. O. Mason, Inc. v. United States
49 Cust. Ct. 89 (U.S. Customs Court, 1962)
Close v. United States
47 Cust. Ct. 370 (U.S. Customs Court, 1961)
R. J. Saunders & Co. v. United States
41 Cust. Ct. 346 (U.S. Customs Court, 1958)
Bluefries New York, Inc. v. United States
40 Cust. Ct. 553 (U.S. Customs Court, 1958)