The Supreme Court has agreed to hear two cases challenging the tariffs imposed by President Trump this year under the International Emergency Economic Powers. Importers should continue to take steps to preserve their right to potential refunds should the court uphold lower court decisions against the tariffs.
In August the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit affirmed a Court of International Trade decision that the “reciprocal” and trafficking-related tariffs imposed under IEEPA are “unbounded in scope, amount, and duration” and therefore exceed the authority that law delegates to the president. In June the District Court for the District of Columbia issued a separate decision that IEEPA does not authorize the president to impose tariffs at all.
The Supreme Court has consolidated these two cases and agreed to an expedited schedule for hearing them. Opening briefs are due by Sept. 19 and oral arguments are expected in the first week of November. This timeframe leaves open the possibility that the court could hand down a decision by the end of the year.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent was reported as saying this week that if the Supreme Court rules against the tariffs and authorizes refunds of those paid, “we’d have to do it.” Importers should therefore continue to monitor the liquidation of entries where IEEPA tariffs were paid to ensure their rights to potential tariff refunds are not lost, extending liquidations where possible and protesting if entries are liquidated. For further details, please find STR's guidance here.
If your company has entries subject to IEEPA tariffs that have liquidated, or if you have other questions about this litigation and its impact on your business, please contact an ST&R professional or email us at tariffs@strtrade.com.
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