The US Supreme Court Could Take a Case Involving International Trade

The case is called Goss International Corporation vs. Tokyo Kikai Seiskusho, or TKS.

A US court found TKS guilty of “dumping”, or, in other words, setting its US prices below cost.

The US District court ruled that TKS should pay more than 30 million dollars in damages to Goss International.

But, in reaction, the Japanese government passed a law that allowed TKS to “claw back” that 30 million from a Goss subsidiary in Japan.

A US Appeals court has ruled that it can do nothing to stop that claw back.

So Goss International’s CEO Bob Brown has petitioned the Supreme Court to hear the case.

Brown says he thinks that’s the only way his company can get justice.

If they get their money back, they’ve gotten away with it. They had access to the markets, they dumped. The economic results to an American company are what they are and I’m sure we could have a long philosophical debate on whether that you know on capitalism and free trade. The factors here are it’s a real life situation and ….there’s been no consequences but for our verdict to date and if they recover their funds, they got away with it.

The original ruling that resulted in the 30 million dollars fine was made under a 1916 anti dumping law.

But the World Trade Organization found that law was out of line with international anti dumping rules and penalties.

So Congress repealed the 1916 law, but did not invalidate the Goss judgment.

Larry Walders, an attorney for TKS, says the Congressional move kind of surprised Japanese lawmakers.

They expected to see not only the law’s repeal, but also an overturning of the judgement.

The Japanese government then concluded that this was a violation of the understanding that they had reached with the united states. It was a failure on the part of the united states to implement the WTO decision. So japan adopted a statute called the special measures act, but it is also referred to as a ‘clawback action’.

Goss has asked for help help in its legal battle from both of New Hampshire’s U.S. Senators.

Senators Judd Gregg and John Sununu have written to the Solicitor General and the State Department urging their assistance in the case.

Senator Gregg says he’s gotten involved because he disagrees with the Appellate Court’s ruling that would let TKS take back the 30 million dollar fine.

So I think its reasonable that we have American support for our companies that are wronged and Goss has clearly been wronged. There is no question about that.

One of the questions before the high court involves an area of law known as “comity.”

The term refers to the idea that courts should not disrespect the jurisdiction, laws, or court decisions of another country.

But the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that this case is not a question of comity.

Instead the Appellate Court decided the Goss matter was put to rest once TKS paid Goss the 30 million dollars. .

And the court ruled it had no jurisdiction to stop TKS from clawing back its money from Goss subsidiary.

Boston University Law professor Charles Whitehead.

There’s an entirely good possibility that the supreme court will say, based upon the particular facts of this case just like the eighth circuit we don’t reach comity, right. our issue here was whether or not there was jurisdiction in the first instance. There is none. So you can’t issue an injunction. If you have no authority over these parties, you certainly can’t enjoin them.

The Supreme Court has not yet chosen to take the case.

And despite the urgings from New Hampshire’s two senators, the justices could decide the case lacks what’s needed to make it worthy of review.

The lower court has already said that the Goss issue is really one for U.S. trade officials to discuss with Japan.

But Goss officials say without the Supreme Court’s help, they will likely lose what they gained in the anti dumping case.