Swissedent International v. United States

47 Cust. Ct. 174
CourtUnited States Customs Court
DecidedDecember 4, 1961
DocketC.D. 2298
StatusPublished
Cited by10 cases

This text of 47 Cust. Ct. 174 (Swissedent International 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
Swissedent International v. United States, 47 Cust. Ct. 174 (cusc 1961).

Opinion

Johnson, Judge:

This is a protest against the collector’s assessment of duty on merchandise, described as “Candulor CR Shade Guides,” imported from Switzerland on May 14, 1959, at 45 per centum ad valorem under paragraph 212 of the Tariff Act of 1930, as modified by the Protocol of Terms of Accession by Japan to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, T.D. 53865, effective September 10, 1955, T.D. 53877, as chinaware articles, not tableware, kitchenware, or table or kitchen utensils, not containing 25 per centum or more of calcined bone. It is claimed that the merchandise is [175]*175free of duty under paragraph. 1821 of said tariff act, added by Public Law 85-211, 85th Congress, 71 Stat. 486, as samples imported to be used in the United States only for soliciting orders for products of foreign countries.

At the trial, the protest was abandoned as to entry No. 13368, which covered so-called mold guides.

The pertinent provisions of the tariff act, as modified or amended, are as follows:

[Pab. 212, as modified.] China, porcelain, and other vitrified wares, * * * and manufactures in chief value of such ware, not specially provided for:
*******
Articles which are not tableware, kitchenware, table or kitchen utensils, or chemical stoneware, and which do not contain 25 per centum or more of calcined bone. 45% ad val.
Pab. 1821 [as added], (a) Except as provided in subparagraphs (b), (e), and (d), any sample to be used in the United States only for soliciting orders for products of foreign countries. [Free.]
(b) Subparagraph (a) shall apply to a sample only if its value does not exceed $1, except that this limitation shall not apply to (1) any sample which is marked, torn, perforated, or otherwise treated, in such a manner that such sample is unsuitable for sale or for use otherwise than as a sample, * * *. *******
(f) The Secretary of the Treasury shall prescribe such regulations as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this paragraph.

By T.D. 54492, the Secretary of the Treasury provided:

No additional regulations are necessary in order to permit classification under * * * subparagraphs (a) and (b) (1) of paragraph 1821 * * * of Public Law No. 85-211, inasmuch as the procedures provided for in the existing Customs Regulations are adequate to carry out the provisions of the statutes mentioned in this paragraph. * * *
Free entry of samples under the provisions of subparagraphs (a) and (b) (1) of paragraph 1821 will be facilitated if: (1) Each parcel or package in which such samples are mailed or otherwise shipped are clearly marked on the outside to indicate that they contain samples for which free entry will be claimed under subparagraph (a) or subparagraph (b) (1), as the case may be, of paragraph 1821; and (2) each parcel or package contains a statement to this effect and outlines the basis of the claim for free entry.

At the trial, Leland B. Chase testified that he is president of Swisse-dent International, Swissedent Los Angeles, Inc., Swissedent Chicago, Inc., and Swissedent New York, Inc., and is assistant treasurer of Swissedent Foundation, Inc. According to the witness, the business of Swissedent International is the distribution and sale of Candulor CR artificial porcelain teeth, manufactured in Zurich, Switzerland, by Alfred Steen Candulor Dental Manufacturing. It is the exclusive agent or purchaser of such merchandise for the United States. The other three companies, of which Mr. Chase is president, are sales companies servicing customers and selling Candulor CR artificial [176]*176porcelain teeth in certain areas of the United States. Swissedent Foundation, Inc., puts on courses for training dental technicians.

The witness explained that “Candulor” is a trade name, coined by the manufacturer of the product; that the “C” in “CR” refers to compactness, meaning density or strength, which is one of the characteristics of the product, and the “R” stands for reflective power, which indicates the quality of light reflection in the teeth. Any artificial teeth having the label “Candulor CR” are made only by Alfred Steen.

The witness stated that he was familiar with the shade guides described on the invoice herein and produced a sample, which was received in evidence as plaintiffs’ collective exhibit 1. It consists of a fan-shaped article made up of 15 metal prongs, about 2 inches long, each having at its tip a simulated tooth. Each tooth is in a different shade or color. Each shade is identified by the number appearing on the prong. The article is contained in a box marked on the bottom “Sample, Rot To Be Sold.”

The Government introduced into evidence, as defendant’s collective exhibit A, a similar shade guide in a slightly larger box, having no wording on the bottom. The witness stated that that box was of a type used prior to April 1959.

According to Mr. Chase, each tooth sample in the shade guide is different and distinct in color from any other and from any produced by any other manufacturer. The shades are divided into two categories: (1) Those resembling younger natural teeth, having a fresh unmarred appearance with few defects, and characterized by a bluish hue along the incisor biting edge, and (2) those resembling mature natural teeth, having small subtle stain lines on the surface and pigments where the enamel has been worn away by abrasion.

In ordering Candulor CR artificial teeth, a shade guide, such as plaintiffs’ collective exhibit 1, and a pictorial mold chart are used. The former is needed to identify the particular color desired. A pictorial representation cannot be used in its place since, in the present state of the photographic arts, the subtle colorations and differences between various shades cannot be accurately reproduced. The pictorial mold chart shows the shape, size, and form of the artificial porcelain teeth carried in the manufacturer’s line. The Candulor CR line has 15 different shades and many different molds, so that there are over 5,000 individual items.

Mr. Chase stated that the shade guide, plaintiffs’ collective exhibit 1, is a color guide used for selecting and ordering Candulor CR artificial teeth. It is not sold, but is distributed free of charge to dentists and dental technicians who require it for the purpose of placing orders. According to the witness, it would not be possible to use the [177]*177teeth in the shade guide in a bridge or plate, because the metal prongs are attached in such a way that if the teeth are removed, part of their back surface would be destroyed. Furthermore, the samples do not represent any actual molds, but are merely idealistic forms for use as guides to the dentist in selecting the color he wants. Actual teeth, such as the anterior or front teeth exemplified in plaintiffs’ collective exhibit 3, have gold-clad pins embedded in the porcelain and emerging from the back of the teeth, so that they may be joined to the denture base plastic. The posterior, or back teeth, exemplified in plaintiffs’ collective exhibit 3, have little eminences or cusps as are found in natural teeth.

Mr. Chase added that his firm purchases the shade guides at 50 per centum of cost from the manufacturer, who assumes the other 50 per centum of the cost thereof.

Additional testimony was given by Dr. Balzell J.

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Bluebook (online)
47 Cust. Ct. 174, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/swissedent-international-v-united-states-cusc-1961.