Pomeroy Collection, Inc. v. U.S.

• Decision Date: 19 June 2002
• Docket Number: Court No. 99-02-00096.,SLIP OP. 02-57.
• Parties: THE POMEROY COLLECTION, INC., Plaintiff, v. UNITED STATES, Defendant.
• Court: U.S. Court of International Trade

246 F.Supp.2d 1286

THE POMEROY COLLECTION, INC., Plaintiff, v. UNITED STATES, Defendant.

SLIP OP. 02-57.

Court No. 99-02-00096.

United States Court of International Trade.

June 19, 2002.

Fitch, King and Caffentzis, New York, NY (Peter J. Fitch), for Plaintiff.

Robert D. McCallum, Jr., Assistant Attorney General; Joseph I. Liebman, Attorney in Charge, International Trade Field Office, Commercial Litigation Branch, Civil Division, United States Department of Justice (Bruce N. Stratvert); Beth C. Brotman, Office of Assistant Chief Counsel, International Trade Litigation, U.S. Customs Service, for Defendant, of counsel.

OPINION

RIDGWAY, Judge.

This case is before the Court on crossmotions for summary judgment. Plaintiff Pomeroy Collection, Inc. ("Pomeroy") challenges the decision of the United States Customs Service ("Customs") denying Pomeroy's protests concerning the tariff classification of certain merchandise imported from Mexico in 1997 and described on the invoice as "Medium Romano Floor Lamps Rustic." Customs classified the merchandise as decorative glass articles— specifically, "[g]lassware of a kind used for ... indoor decoration or similar purposes," under subheading 7013.99.90 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States ("HTSUS") (1997)—and assessed duties at the rate of 5.2% ad valorem. Pomeroy contends that the goods instead are properly classifiable as "[o]ther articles of glass," under subheading 7020.00.60, HTSUS, and are thus duty-free.¹ Complaint n 5.²

Jurisdiction lies under 28 U.S.C. § 1581(a) (1994). Customs' classification decisions are subject to de novo review pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2640 (1994). For the reasons discussed below, Customs properly classified the subject merchandise as decorative glass articles, under subheading 7013.99.90, HTSUS. Accordingly, Pomeroy's motion for summary judgment is denied, and the Government's cross-motion is granted.

I. Background

The merchandise at issue is principally used for indoor decoration, and consists of two separate components—a glass vessel with a rounded bottom, and a wrought iron pedestal or stand. See Plaintiffs Exhibit 1 (a representative sample of the merchandise at issue) ("Sample"); Defendant's Statement of Additional Material Facts As To Which There Is No Genuine Dispute to Be Tried ("Def.'s Statement of Add'l Mat. Facts") Mil, 3; Plaintiffs Brief at 6-7 (indicating agreement with Customs' description of function of merchandise); Plaintiffs Reply to Defendant's Memorandum In Support of Its Motion For Summary Judgment and In Opposition to Plaintiffs Motion for Summary Judgment ("Plaintiffs Reply Brief) at 7 (noting "the agreement of the parties as to the facts");³ Plaintiffs Statement of Material Facts As to Which There Are No Genuine Issues to Be Tried ("Pl.'s Statement of Mat. Facts") HI 2, 3; Defendant's Response to Plaintiffs Statement of Material Facts As to Which There Are No Genuine Issues to Be Tried ("Def.'s Resp. to Pl.'s Statement of Mat. Facts") ¶¶ 2, 3.

The pedestal, which stands approximately thirty inches high, is designed to cradle (that is, to hold and support) the glass vessel. See Sample; Plaintiffs Brief at 6-7; Defendant's Brief at 5. When it is inserted in the pedestal, with its open end facing upward, the vessel is used to hold a candle or some other object such as flowers, a plant, or a bottle of wine. See Sample; Def.'s Statement of Add'l Mat. Facts 113; Plaintiffs Reply Brief at 7 (noting "the agreement of the parties as to the facts"); Affidavit of Edward Todd Pomeroy ("Pomeroy Aff") 15 (although the goods were "designed as candle holders ... they can be used to hold a variety of articles other than candles"). The rounded bottom of the glass vessel prevents it from standing on its own or from functioning in its intended manner without the wrought iron pedestal. See Sample; Pl.'s Statement of Mat. Facts H 3; Def.'s Resp. to Pl.'s Statement of Mat. Facts ¶ 3.

A. Customs' 1994 Ruling

Customs' classification of the merchandise in the instant case was predicated on a prior ruling. In that ruling (the "1994 Ruling"), Customs classified goods—marketed as "floor candles," and consisting of wrought iron pedestals and glass vessels— that were similar in all material respects to the merchandise at issue in this case. HQ 956810 (Nov. 28, 1994). The same glass vessels are used in both articles, and the styles of the wrought iron pedestals differ only slightly. See Pomeroy Aff. 11112, 4.

In its 1994 Ruling, Customs acknowledged the two separate components of the merchandise (the pedestals and the glass vessels), and therefore treated the "floor candles" as "composite goods." HQ 956810 (Nov. 28, 1994). Finding that the glass vessel is the component that fulfills the function of the article, Customs determined that it is the glass vessel which imparts its "essential character" to the merchandise. Id. Based on that determination, Customs classified the "floor candles" as decorative articles of glass, under subheading 7013.99.90, HTSUS—the same classification it applied to the merchandise at issue here. Id.

B. Customs' 1995 Ruling

After Customs' 1994 ruling, importer Tucan International sought a ruling on the classification of such goods if the components were imported separately. See HQ 957413 (Mar. 31, 1995); Pomeroy Aff. 113. Pomeroy contends that the reasoning of this later Customs ruling (the "1995 Ruling") controls the case at bar.

In its 1995 Ruling, Customs determined that—imported separately—the wrought iron pedestals are classifiable as "statuettes and other ornaments, of base metal," under heading 8306, HTSUS. HQ 957413 (Mar. 31, 1995). As to the glass vessels, Customs determined that, because their rounded bottoms render them "incapable of standing, or of holding any article without the use of the wrought iron pedestals as supports," the glass vessels—imported separately—"are a part of the wrought iron pedestals with glass vessels." Id. (emphasis added). Customs concluded that the glass vessels alone could not be classified as decorative articles of glass under heading 7013, HTSUS—the classification applied in the 1994 Ruling—because that heading does not provide for parts of decorative glass articles. Id. Customs therefore ruled that—imported separately—the glass vessels are properly classified under 7020.00.00, HTSUS as "[o]ther articles of glass." Id.

II. Standard of Review

Under USCIT Rule 56, summary judgment is appropriate where "there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and ... the moving party is entitled to [ ] judgment as a matter of law." USCIT R. 56(c). Customs' classification decisions are reviewed through a two-step analysis— first construing the relevant tariff headings, then determining under which of those headings the merchandise at issue is properly classified. Bausch & Lomb, Inc. v. United States, 148 F.3d 1363, 1365 (Fed. Cir. 1998) (citing Universal Elecs., Inc. v. United States, 112 F.3d 488, 491 (Fed.Cir. 1997)).

Interpretation of the relevant tariff headings is a question of law, while application of the terms to the merchandise is a question of fact. See id. Summary judgment is thus appropriate where—as here—the nature of the merchandise is not in question, and the sole issue is its proper classification. See Bausch & Lomb, supra (it is "clear that summary judgment is appropriate when there is no genuine dispute as to the underlying factual issue of exactly what the merchandise is").

On review, Customs' classification rulings are afforded a measure of deference proportional to their power to persuade, in accordance with the principles set forth in Skidmore v. Swift & Co., 323 U.S. 134, 65 S.Ct. 161, 89 L.Ed. 124 (1944). See United States v. Mead Corp., 533 U.S. 218, 234-35, 121 S.Ct. 2164, 150 L.Ed.2d 292 (2001); Mead Corp. v. United States, 283 F.3d 1342, 1346 (Fed.Cir.2002).

III. Discussion

The proper classification of all merchandise is governed by the General Rules of Interpretation ("GRIs"), which provide a framework for classification under the HTSUS, and are to applied in numerical order. See, e.g., Orlando Food Corp. v. United States, 140 F.3d 1437, 1439 (Fed. Cir.1998); Baxter Healthcare Corp. v. United States, 182 F.3d 1333, 1337 (Fed. Cir.1999). See generally Pillowtex Corp. v. United States, 171 F.3d 1370, 1374-75 et seq. (Fed.Cir.1995) (methodically applying the GRIs in order, in addressing a claim for classification under GRI 3(b), among other theories).

GRI 1 requires that goods be classified "according to the terms of the headings and any relevant section or chapter notes and, provided such headings or notes do not otherwise require, according to the following [GRIs 2 through 6]." GRI 1. Thus, the first step is to determine whether the headings and notes require a particular classification. In classifying the merchandise at issue here, Customs considered two competing headings—7013 and 8306.

Heading 7013, in relevant part, covers "glassware of a kind used for ... indoor decoration or similar purposes." HTSUS, heading 7013. The merchandise at issue is used for indoor decoration, and includes a glass vessel which is used to hold a candle or other similar object such as flowers, a plant, or a bottle of wine. Since a part of the merchandise—specifically, the glass vessel—is made of glass, the merchandise prima facie falls under heading 7013.⁴

Heading 8306, in relevant part, covers "statuettes and other ornaments, of base metal." HTSUS, heading 8306. As the Explanatory Notes for heading 8306 indicate, that heading includes not only "wholly ornamental" articles, but also "articles whose only usefulness is to contain or support other decorative articles or to add to their decorative effect." Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System: Explanatory Notes (2d ed. 1996) ("Explanatory Notes") 83.06.⁵ The merchandise here consists in part of a pedestal of wrought iron (a base metal), which is used to contain or support another decorative ...