International Trade Commission, United States

International Trade Commission, United States, independent agency of the U.S. government established in 1916 as the Tariff Commission; renamed International Trade Commission in 1975. It is charged with serving the president and Congress as an advisory, fact-finding agency on tariff, commercial-policy, and foreign-trade problems. Earlier tariff agencies had a definite policy of protection; the 1916 commission was considered the first truly unbiased agency. Recent legislation, such as the Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988, empowers the commission not only to investigate the effects of imports on competing domestic industry, but to direct imports to be excluded if it finds producers engaging in unfair trade or in violation of patent or copyright law. The president may terminate commission orders for policy reasons. On request, the commission's findings are made available to the president or the congressional committees concerned with trade. The commission advises on the possible effects of pending trade agreements or tariff legislation as well. The U.S. Trade Commission consists of six members appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate for nine-year terms, not more than three to be of the same political party and the chairman and vice chairman to be of different parties.

The United States Court of International Trade is an Article III court, with full powers in law and equity. The Customs Court Act of 1980 replaced the old United States Customs Court with the United States Court of International Trade. The Court has nine Judges, of whom no more than five can be of the same political party, as well as Senior Judges. The Court sits in New York City, although it is authorized to sit elsewhere, including in foreign nations.

The Court possesses limited subject matter jurisdiction, meaning that it may hear only cases involving particular international trade and customs law questions. For example, the Court hears disputes such as those involving protests filed with U.S. Customs and Border Protection, decisions regarding Trade Adjustment Assistance by the United States Department of Labor or United States Department of Agriculture, customs broker licensing, and disputes relating to determinations made by the United States International Trade Commission and the Department of Commerce's International Trade Administration regarding antidumping and countervailing duties.

There is one notable exception to the Court's jurisdiction. In cases involving antidumping and countervailing duties imposed on Canadian or Mexican merchandise, an interested party can request that the case be heard before a special ad hoc binational panel organized under Chapter 19 of the 1988 Canadian-U.S. Free Trade Agreement.

Most cases are heard by a single judge. If a case challenges the constitutionality of a U.S. law or has important implications regarding the administration or interpretation of the customs laws, then it may be heard by a three-judge panel.

Although the Court maintains its own rules of procedure, they are patterned for the most part on the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. The court has held that decisions interpreting the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure are "instructive" in interpreting its own rules.

Appeals from the Court of International Trade are heard by the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, which normally sits in Washington, D.C. Further appeals from the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit are heard by the Supreme Court of the United States.

Judges and Senior Judges (current as of May 2007)

• Chief Judge Jane A. Restani, appointed by President Ronald Reagan in 1983
• Judge Gregory W. Carman, appointed by President Ronald Reagan in 1983
• Judge Donald C. Pogue, appointed by President Bill Clinton in 1995
• Judge Evan J. Wallach, appointed by President Bill Clinton in 1995
• Judge Judith M. Barzilay, appointed by President Bill Clinton in 1998
• Judge Delissa A. Ridgway, appointed by President Bill Clinton in 1998
• Judge Richard K. Eaton, appointed by President Bill Clinton in 1999
• Judge Timothy C. Stanceu, appointed by President George W. Bush in 2003
• Judge Leo M. Gordon, appointed by President George W. Bush in 2006
• Senior Judge Thomas J. Aquilino, Jr.
• Senior Judge Nicholas Tsoucalas
• Senior Judge R. Kenton Musgrave
• Senior Judge Richard W. Goldberg

Past Judges

• Judge James L. Watson, appointed by President Lyndon Johnson in 1966, took senior status in 1991, which he held until his death in 2001.
• Judge Edward D Re, appointed by President Lyndon Johnson in 1968, appointed Chief Judge by Jimmy Carter in 1977, serving till his retirement in 1991.
• Judge Bernard Newman, from 1968 to 1983, when he took senior status until his death in 1999

External links

• United States Court of International Trade, official site
• History of the court from the Federal Judicial Center