Paramount Textile Machinery Co. v. United States

52 Cust. Ct. 392, 1963 Cust. Ct. LEXIS 1210
CourtUnited States Customs Court
DecidedDecember 24, 1963
DocketReap. Dec. 10654; Entry No. 3094
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 52 Cust. Ct. 392 (Paramount Textile Machinery 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
Paramount Textile Machinery Co. v. United States, 52 Cust. Ct. 392, 1963 Cust. Ct. LEXIS 1210 (cusc 1963).

Opinion

Donlon, Judge:

Two so-called “preboarding machines,” exported from England in a knocked-down condition, were entered by plaintiff at Norfolk, Va., on December 27, 1960, and were appraised on the basis of foreign value.

[393]*393It appears that the entry included both the two machines and certain spare parts. The valuation of the spare parts is not in dispute.The sole issue is as to valuation of the two machines. These are identified as machines for shaping hosiery, used in hosiery mills.

It has been stipulated that these machines are an article which appears in the final list promulgated under the Customs Simplification Act of 1956 and effective February 27, 1958, which was prior to the-date this merchandise was imported. T.D. 54165. Therefore, ap-praisement is under old section 402, of the Tariff Act of 1930, renumbered by the 1956 act as section 402a.

It is plaintiff’s claim that there is no foreign, export, or United' States value for these machines and that appraisement should, therefore, be on the basis of their cost of production. Defendant concedes-that there is no basis for determining an export value, but contends-that there is a foreign value, and states that foreign value is the basis on which the machines were appraised.

As is too well known to require citation of authority, plaintiff’s first burden of proof is to establish by affirmative proofs that there is not a foreign value for the merchandise, the absence of facts sufficient to form a basis for export value having been conceded by both parties.

Plaintiff introduced into evidence two affidavits. One was sworn to in England by Guy S. Helliwell, of Samuel Pegg & Son, Ltd., manufacturer-exporter of the instant machines. (Exhibit 1.) The other affidavit likewise was sworn to in England, but by Michael John Andrew of The Andrew Engineering & Development Co., Ltd. (Exhibit 2.) Plaintiff adduced the testimony of Mr. William P. Pope, described as now president of plaintiff corporation and previously, from 1941 to 1959, its executive vice president. Mr. Pope’s testimony bears chiefly on the issue as to whether there was a basis for United States value. His testimony is not relevant to the first issue before the court, namely, whether there existed a foreign value.

Plaintiff’s claim that it has borne its statutory burden of proving that there was no basis for foreign value, in England, must, therefore, be decided on the statements verified by Messrs. Helliwell and Andrew. Mr. Helliwell is associated with the British firm which made and sold these machines. Mr. Andrew is associated with another British firm, which also manufactures and sells preboarding machines to hosiery mills. Both affiants adequately qualify themselves as being acquainted, in the regular course of business, with the manufacture and sale of preboarding machines to hosiery mills in England, including such machines as those involved in this litigation.

Mr. Helliwell states that, during 1960, his company sold, or offered to sell, its preboarding machines in Great Britain “to factories, i.e., hosiery maufacturers or hosiery dyers, and not to dealers, stockists or distributors who would buy and sell or stock them on their own [394]*394account. All preboarding machines sold by my Company during the year 1960 were sold direct by my Company to the users namely hosiery manufacturers or hosiery dyers.”

Mr. Andrew states that he is familiar with the preboarding machines manufactured by Pegg & Son “because they are competitive with our machines and I have frequently observed their machines in actual use.” He goes on to say that the Pegg machines and the Andrew machines are “different,” in that the machines “made by Samuel Pegg have a round or cylindrical steam chamber which when in use is lowered over the forms containing the hosiery and is then raised at the end of the pre-boarding process while the machines manufactured by my company have a rectangular steam chamber containing two sliding vertical doors which are opened and closed to allow the forms containing the hosiery to enter and leave the chamber.”

It should be noted here that Mr. Helliwell agrees as to these differences ; agrees, also, that the two machines are competitive; and states that The Andrew Engineering & Development Co. and his own company, Pegg & Son, are the only manufacturers of preboarding machines in Gre'at Britain.

Mr. Andrew’s statement as to offers of preboarding machines by his company, in the year 1960, is that the company made offers “only to ultimate users namely hosiery manufacturers or dyers and did not offer or sell said machines to stockists or distributors who would buy and sell or stock them on their own account.”

Mr. Andrew described their British selling prices, which prices included without additional charge certain technical assistance, service, limited parts replacement, and installation of the first machine.

Mr. Helliwell stated that the British selling prices of Pegg & Son preboarding machines included similar, although not identical, items.

Defendant introduced into evidence certain exhibits, including a letter (collective exhibit C), dated September 29, 1959, from Mr. Helliwell, as managing director of Pegg & Son, to James H. Lund-quist, Esq., with attached statement in reply to a questionnaire, said to have requested information as to Pegg’s pricelists, sales, etc.

From the record, as it pertains to the issue of foreign value, it appears that preboarding machines were sold 'and offered for sale in England by the two manufacturers of such machines to hosiery mills and hosiery dyers, and that such sales and offers were made directly by the manufacturers and not by jobbers, wholesalers, or other middlemen. It appears, also, that these machines are used in the making of hosiery, and that they are constructed in accordance with standard specifications. (Def. collective exhibit C.)

Plaintiff argues that, on this record, it has shown that the machines were not freely offered in the home market, England, to all purchasers, [395]*395but only to users, that is, to hosiery manufacturers and hosiery dyers; and that, under these circumstances, there was not the free offering which section 402a (c) contemplates. In support of this argument, plaintiff cites United States v. Mexican Products Co., 28 CCPA 80, C.A.D. 129, and seeks to distinguish Rico, Inc. v. United States, 48 CCPA 110, C.A.D. 778.

The Mexicam, Products Co. case illustrates the fallacy of citing particular language only, without reference to the issue the court was there considering. The issue was not, as here, which of the statutory bases of appraisement was proper to the case, but solely as to computation of value. The trial court had found that dutiable values were the manufacturer’s list prices, less a discount of 10 per centum, plus packing. Our appeals court held that this finding, as to the item of discount, was not supported by substantial evidence. The question was whether that discount was available to all purchasers. The record disclosed that it was not. The court held that a lower price which is offered only to some purchasers, even when those are a major portion of all customers, is not the market value or price which the statute requires as the basis from which computation of foreign and export value proceeds. The court was not asked to consider, and did not, as to what kinds of customers were in the market for the involved Mexican glassware.

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

Related

Paramount Textile Machinery Co. v. United States
56 Cust. Ct. 761 (U.S. Customs Court, 1966)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
52 Cust. Ct. 392, 1963 Cust. Ct. LEXIS 1210, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/paramount-textile-machinery-co-v-united-states-cusc-1963.