International Polyethylene Bag Co. v. United States

65 Cust. Ct. 155, 1970 Cust. Ct. LEXIS 3059
CourtUnited States Customs Court
DecidedSeptember 3, 1970
DocketC.D. 4071
StatusPublished

This text of 65 Cust. Ct. 155 (International Polyethylene Bag Co. v. United States) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Customs Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
International Polyethylene Bag Co. v. United States, 65 Cust. Ct. 155, 1970 Cust. Ct. LEXIS 3059 (cusc 1970).

Opinion

WxlsoN, Judge:

These three protests, consolidated for trial, involve eight entries of merchandise at the port of Los Angeles between [157]*157November 20,1962 and May 29,1963 exported from Hong Kong. The importations were invoiced and entered as “Polyethylene Bags.” Defendant’s brief, page 1 states: “It is undisputed that this is a correct description, and that the merchandise is, in fact, composed of polyethylene.” Furthermore, defendant concedes “that the merchandise at bar is not classifiable, directly, under any of the provisions of the Tariff Act of 1930 in effect at the time of importation.”

The official papers were received in evidence without being marked. Counsel stipulated that illustrative exhibits 1 and 2 “are representative of all the merchandise covered by all the invoices, with the exception of gauges and dimensions.” The imported merchandise consists of various gauges and sizes.

The collector of customs classified the involved material by similitude to “Manufactures of india rubber or gutta-percha, or of which these substances, or either of them is the component material of chief value, not specially provided for (except * * *) ”, other, at 12% per centum ad valorem under paragraph 1537 (b) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as modified by T.D. 53865.

Plaintiff claims that this merchandise is properly dutiable at 8% per centum ad valorem under paragraph 1558 by similitude under the provisions for “All articles manufactured, in whole or in part, not specially provided for: Synthetic rubber and synthetic rubber articles” in T.D. 54108.

Alternatively, plaintiff claims that this merchandise is properly dutiable at only 10 per centum ad valorem under paragraph 1558, as modified by T.D. 52739, as a nonenumerated manufactured article under the provisions for “Articles manufactured, in whole or in part, not specially provided for (except * * * synthetic rubber and synthetic rubber articles * * *).”

The record herein consists of the oral testimony of three witnesses, Morton Weiss and Isidore Lebowitz for the plaintiff, and Albert H. Schneider for the defendant. Exhibits 1 and 2 are polyethylene bags. Exhibit A for identification consists of photocopies of several pages of a book, referred to as Chapter 18, pages 612, 627 and 628, which were held by the trial judge to be inadmissible.

The issue here presented is whether the imported merchandise was properly classified and assessed by the collector by similitude to manufactures wholly or in chief value of gutta-percha or india rubber under paragraph 1537(b), Tariff Act of 1930, as modified, by virtue of paragraph 1559(a) of said act, as amended by the Customs Simplification Act of 1954, or whether as claimed by plaintiff the polyethylene bags should be classified and assessed by similitude to articles of synthetic rubber provided for eo nomine in paragraph [158]*1581558 of the act, as modified, or alternatively under paragraph 1558 at 10 per centum ad valorem as nonenumerated manufactured articles.

The collector’s action in classifying this merchandise by similitude to manufactures wholly or in chief value of india rubber or gutta-percha carries with it the presumption that it is not dutiable directly under any of the express enumerations in Title I of the Tariff Act of 1930, and/or as amended or modified. Scientific Packaging Corporation, A. N. Deringer, Inc. v. United States, 54 Cust. Ct. 38, C.D. 2505 (1965), affirmed Same v. Same, 53 CCPA 34, C.A.D. 873 (1966).

In the foregoing case, the trial court, 54 Cust. Ct. 38, C.D. 2505, noted that polyethylene bags were classified by similitude to manufactures of cotton in paragraph 1559, Tariff Act of 1930, as amended by the Customs Simplification Act of 1954, and were assessed with duty at 20 per centum ad valorem pursuant to the provisions of paragraph 923 of the Tariff Act of 1930, as modified by prevailing trade agreement. The court also noted at page 42 that the present provision differs from its predecessors which included, as relevant determinants of similitude, not only use, but also material, quality, and texture; that in eliminating these three last mentioned properties as significant tests of similitude, the court did not believe that the legislature contemplated any different construction of the scope of the use factor than had previously obtained. The court cited Corporacion Argentina de Productores de Carnes v. United States, 29 CCPA 288, 293, C.A.D. 204 (1942), and quoted therefrom as follows:

“The similitude clause does not require that the resemblance should be in all four of the particulars mentioned — -material, quality, texture, and use — a substantial similarity in one of those particulars being adequate. * * *”

Plaintiff’s witness, Morton Weiss, testified that he had been president of plaintiff corporation for seven years; that prior thereto he was president of C. & W. Paper Company, Inc., which jobbed annually approximately $750,000 of packaging materials, wrapping paper, plastics, tapes and cartons; that plaintiff is a manufacturer, converter, and importer of polyethylene and plastic; that as a converter, it prints and manufactures bags of polyethylene material. The witness further stated that he had studied chemical engineering at the University of Southern California, and had taken courses, which he passed, in qualitative and quantitative analyses; that he attended trade shows in the packaging business at New York and Chicago each year, at which problems in the packaging industry were discussed with polyethylene manufacturers, machinery manufacturers and material manufacturers. This witness was well qualified to testify on the questions involved.

[159]*159Weiss also testified that plaintiff manufactures and imports millions of polyethylene bags each year; that his firm was an authorized converter for several large firms who deal in polyethylene material. He identified exhibit 1 as representative of the invoiced item in entry 64351 in protest 64/3050 (D), and said it was a gusseted material made from tubing stock. He identified exhibit 2 as a polyethylene bag described on page 2 of the invoice in entry 45164, covered by protest 64/3021 (D). Mr. Weiss also testified that polyethylene bags are acceptable and used in every type of packaging common “today in marketing” such as hardware, electronics, foods, cotton goods, display and shipping purposes and for solid and semisolid items, except for oil. He said that such bags have been on the market since 1946 or 1947 and have been commonplace since 1952. Mr. Weiss also testified that polyethylene bags are manufactured either from tubing or flat stock, in large part from tubing, and that the bags here involved were made from tubing. The witness pointed out several differences in properties and practical uses of polyethylene and cellophane bags. He stated that only in rare instances can cellophane be used for the purposes for which polyethylene is commercially feasible. He admitted he had no familiarity with india rubber or gutta-percha. He further testified that in his experience he had never seen containers or bags of the nature of the polyethylene bags at bar, made of natural rubber, india rubber or gutta-percha, and that he had not seen any other kind of bags made of those materials used for the same purposes as the polyethylene bags at bar.

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39 Cust. Ct. 329 (U.S. Customs Court, 1957)
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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
65 Cust. Ct. 155, 1970 Cust. Ct. LEXIS 3059, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/international-polyethylene-bag-co-v-united-states-cusc-1970.