Justia U.S. Federal Circuit Court of Appeals Opinion Summaries

Non-resident alien citizens of China sought refunds of taxes paid under the Federal Insurance Contribution Act (FICA), 26 U.S.C. 3101, for work performed as contract workers in the Northern Mariana Islands. A corporation sought a refund of taxes paid for its contract workers in the Islands. The statutory definition of work performed in the United States contains no reference to the Islands. The Claims Court entered judgment on the pleadings in favor of the government. The Federal Circuit affirmed, noting various laws and covenants under which citizens of the Islands are to be treated as citizens of the United States. Congress intended to treat the Islands like Guam is treated for purposes of FICA and to apply both employer and employee FICA taxes to the Islands.

Following a Veterans Court remand of a claim for service benefits relating to post-traumatic stress, the veteran submitted a petition for attorney fees and expenses in the amount of $6,193. The VA found that the veteran was a prevailing party, with a net worth of less than $2,000,000, and that the VA position was not substantially justified, as required by the Equal Access to Justice Act, 28 U.S.C. 2412, but that several billing items should be denied for lack of sufficient detail. The Veterans Court agreed and reduced the fee award by $437.50, rejecting a claim that additional detail would violate attorney-client privilege. The Federal Circuit affirmed. The Act does not abrogate privilege; its specificity requirements do not require disclosure of the exact contents of communications identified on a bill and do not violate privilege. Having been publicly filed, the general nature of the claim and documents filed are not privileged.

The companies sell the parts of beverage cans. Crown sued Ball concerning two patents issued to Crown in 2005. The district court entered summary judgment for Ball. The Federal Circuit reversed and remanded, first holding that the patents did not violate the written description requirement. The common specification of the patents conveyed, to one of ordinary skill in the art, that Crown was in possession of an embodiment that improved metal usage. There remained a material issue of fact as to whether the patents claimed improvements inherently anticipated by a prior patent application, so summary judgment was inappropriate.

After sustaining a shoulder injury from a hepatitis B vaccination, the plaintiff obtained an award under the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act, 42 U.S.C. 300aa. She requested attorney fees of $83,400, based on her attorney's hourly rate. A special master awarded about $74,000. The Claims Court and Federal Circuit affirmed. Attorney fees are generally calculated at market rates prevailing in the forum. The master acted within his discretion and analyzed both local and forum rates, finding a very significant difference. Plaintiff's attorney, based in Cheyenne, Wyoming, did not perform any work in the Washington D.C. forum and was, therefore, entitled to the local rate.

The Department of Commerce has employed a technique known as "zeroing" when it investigates a claim that a foreign producer is "dumping" products in the United States at a price below the price in the country of origin. Using zeroing, margins for sales of merchandise sold by a particular exporter at dumped prices are aggregated and margins for sales at non-dumped prices are given a value of zero; the alternative, known as "offsetting," involves aggregating both dumped and non-dumped prices. The statute, 19 U.S.C. 1677(35)(A), refers to calculation of a "dumping margin" equal to "the amount by which the normal value exceeds the export price." Domestic producers read the word "exceeds" as requiring zeroing. The Federal Circuit has previously upheld use of zeroing in both investigation and administrative review. Following a World Trade Organization decision disapproving the practice, the Department began using offsetting for investigations and zeroing in administrative review. The Court of International Trade upheld the practice. The Federal Circuit reversed, holding that the Department had not adequately justified use of two different interpretations of an ambiguous statute.

The company imports components for home storage and organization systems. The U.S. Customs Service liquidated wall panels and locator tabs as "other articles of plastic" rather than as furniture. The company filed protests and requested that the parts be reclassified under duty free provisions. Customs denied the protests. The Court of International Trade ruled in favor of Customs. The Federal Circuit reversed and remanded. While the lower court examined appropriate authority in defining "unit furniture," it incorrectly determined that a storage panel with hooks was like a wall rack rather than furniture. Noting the various accessories and configurations available with the system, the court stated that the product's versatility is the "very essence of unit furniture."

Beginning in 1993 the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers implemented temporary deviations from its 1953 Water Control Manual in operating the Clearwater Dam, to protect agricultural and other uses. Efforts to update the Manual were eventually abandoned. The state sought compensation for "taking" of its flowage easement based on flooding of the 23,000-acre Black River Wildlife Management Area, which resulted in excessive timber mortality. The Court of Claims awarded more than $5.5 million in damages. The Federal Circuit reversed, reasoning that temporary flooding, which is not "inevitably recurring," does not amount to a taking, but, at most, created tort liability.