Tribunal appeal to proceed despite President vacancy; Supreme Court sent parties back to the pending challenge.

At an interim stage of a new shipper review, the Court noted that the appellants had already filed an appeal before the tribunal against the final findings and later notifications. It also observed that, under the statutory arrangement, the President's functions could be discharged by the senior-most Vice-President, so the absence of a President did not prevent the tribunal from proceeding. In these circumstances, continuing the present appeal would serve no useful purpose, and the appellants were left to advance all their contentions in the pending tribunal appeal.

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Issues: Whether the appellants should be permitted to pursue the challenge before the appellate tribunal instead of keeping the present appeal alive, in view of the pending appeal against the final findings and subsequent notifications and the absence of a President of the tribunal.

Analysis: The controversy before the Court related only to an interim stage of the new shipper review, while the appellants had already filed an appeal before the tribunal against the final findings and later notifications. The Court noted that the tribunal was already seized of that appeal and that, under the statutory scheme, the President's functions could be discharged by the senior most Vice-President in terms of the delegated arrangement under the Customs Act. In these circumstances, no useful purpose would be served by continuing the present appeal, and the appellants were to be allowed to urge all their contentions before the tribunal.

Conclusion: The appellants were relegated to the pending tribunal appeal, with liberty to raise all contentions there.

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