Swift & Co. v. United States

30 C.C.P.A. 171, 1943 CCPA LEXIS 6
CourtCourt of Customs and Patent Appeals
DecidedMarch 1, 1943
DocketNo. 4394
StatusPublished

This text of 30 C.C.P.A. 171 (Swift & Co. v. United States) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Customs and Patent Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Swift & Co. v. United States, 30 C.C.P.A. 171, 1943 CCPA LEXIS 6 (ccpa 1943).

Opinion

Hatfield, Judge,

delivered the opinion of the court:

This is an appeal from a judgment of the United States Customs Court, Third Division.

Imported merchandise, consisting of oleostearin, was assessed with duty by the collector at the port of Jacksonville, Fla., at 1 cent per pound under paragraph 701 of the Tariff Act of 1930, and, in addition thereto, a tax of 3 cents per pound was levied against the merchandise under the provisions of section 701 of the Revenue Act of. 1936 (49 Stat. 1742), amending section 601 (c) (8) of the Revenue Act of 1932, as amended.

The importer protested, claiming that the oleostearin was. not subject to the tax of 3 cents per pound under the provisions of section 701 of the Revenue Act of 1936 for the reason that it was not derived either directly or indirectly from tallow. It was conceded in appellant’s protest, however, that the oleostearin was properly assessed with duty at 1 cent per pound under paragraph 701 of the Tariff Act of 1930.

The statutes, so far as pertinent, read:

Par. 701. * * * tallow, one-half of 1 cent per pound; oleo oil and oleo stearin, 1 cent per pound; dried blood albumen, light, 12 cents per pound; dark, 6 cents per pound.
SEC. 701. TAX ON CERTAIN OILS.
The first sentence of section 601 (c) (8) of the Revenue Act of 1932, as amended, is amended to read as follows:
(8) Whale oil (except sperm oil), fish oil (except cod oil, cod-liver oil, and halibut-liver oil), marine-animal oil, tallow, inedible animal oils, inedible animal fats, inedible animal greases, fatty acids derived from any of the foregoing, and salts of any of the foregoing; all the foregoing, whether or not refined, sulphonated, sulphated, hydrogenated, or otherwise processed, 3 cents per pound; * * *
any article, merchandise, or combination (except oils specified in section 602)4 of the Revenue Act of 1934, as amended), 10 per centum or more of the quantity by weight of which consists of, or is derived directly or indirectly from, one or more of the products specified above in this paragraph or in section 602)4 of the Revenue Act of 1934, as amended, a tax at the rate or rates per pound equal to that proportion of the rate or rates prescribed in this paragraph or such section 602)4 in respect of such product or products which the quantity by weight of the imported article, merchandise, or combination, consisting of or derived from such product or products, bears to the total weight of the imported article, merchandise, or combination * * *. -

[173]*173■In the case of Swift & Co., a Corporation v. United States, 27 C. C. P. A. (Customs) 181, C. A. D. 83, merchandise like that here involved was before us for consideration. (The record in that case was made a part of the record in the instant case.) In affirming the judgment of the trial court in that case, we held, among other things, on the evidence submitted, that oleostearin was produced from oleo stock; that oleo stock was produced, as therein described, from unrendered beef fats; and that as the common meaning of the term “tallow” included unrendered beef fats, oleo stearin “was derived directly or indirectly” from “tallow” and was, therefore, subject to the tax of 3 cents per pound under section 701, supra. We there stated that as appellant had failed to establish that in the trade and commerce of the United States the commercial meaning of the term “tallow” differed from its common meaning, it would be presumed, for the purpose of our decision, that the commercial meaning of the term was the same as its common meaning, citing the case of Rice-Millers’ Association, American Manufacturers v. United States and Oberle (Inc.), 15 Ct. Cust. Appls. 355, T. D. 42560.

In the instant case, counsel for appellant introduced evidence for the purpose of establishing that in the trade and commerce of the United States the term “tallow” on and prior to the date of the enactment of section 701, supra (August 21, 1936), was definitely, uniformly, and generally restricted to rendered animal fats, such as beef and mutton fats, whereas counsel for the Government introduced evidence for the purpose of establishing that in the trade and commerce of the United States the term “tallow” on and prior to the date of the enactment of section 701, supra, was not definitely, uniformly, and generally restricted to rendered animal fats, such as beef and mutton fats, but, on the contrary, included unrendered beef and mutton fats.

Although counsel for appellant argues to some extent in his brief that unrendered beef fat is not within the common moaning of the term “tallow” and that this court erred in the Swift & Co. case, supra, in holding that it was, that question was not raised in the trial jcourt, nor is it raised here in appellant’s assignment of errors. Accordingly, that issue, which was disposed of in the Swift & Co. case, supra, is not now before us. Commercial designation was the sole issue presented to the trial court, and, although in appellant’s assignment of errors it is claimed that the trial court erred in overruling objections to the introduction in evidence of certain testimony on behalf of the Government, those questions are not referred to in the brief of counsel for appellant and, therefore, will not be considered here.

On the record presented, the trial court held that appellant had failed to establish by a preponderance of the evidence that at and prior to the enactment of section 701 of the Revenue Act of 1936, supra, the meaning of the term “tallow” was restricted in the trade [174]*174and commerce of the United States to rendered beef and mutton fats, and that it bad been established by evidence introduced by the Government that, in at least 11 states, the trade understanding of that term included unrendered, as well as rendered, beef and mutton fats

The burden of proving commercial designation was upon appellant, and the findings of the trial court upon that issue must be sustained unless it appears that there is no evidence to support them or that they are contrary to the weight of the evidence: Lamont, Corliss & Co. et al. v. United States, 16 Ct. Cust. Appls. 488, T. D. 43224.

Appellant’s witness Vincent J. Bullen, employed by appellant for 18 years as department manager, stated that he was in charge of selling edible and inedible tallow, grease, oleo oil, oleo stock, and oleostearin; that for 7 years he was assistant manager of the department which handled those products; that both edible and inedible tallow consisted of rendered beef or mutton fats; that he had sold such products throughout the United States; that from his observation and experience the word “tallow” was restricted definitely, uniformly, and generally in the wholesale trade in the United States to rendered beef or mutton fats; and that the term “tallow,” so far as he knew, had never been used to designate unrendered beef or mutton fats. The witness stated on cross-examination that appellant had purchased unrendered fats, but that he did not know under what name or names such fats were purchased.

Appellant’s witness D. P.

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Related

Rice Millers' Ass'n v. United States
15 Ct. Cust. 355 (Customs and Patent Appeals, 1928)
Lamont v. United States
16 Ct. Cust. 488 (Customs and Patent Appeals, 1929)

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Bluebook (online)
30 C.C.P.A. 171, 1943 CCPA LEXIS 6, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/swift-co-v-united-states-ccpa-1943.