A U.S. federal appeals court on Friday struck down a major part of former President Donald Trump’s import tariffs, ruling that he exceeded his authority under the law. The decision is a significant setback to Trump’s trade agenda but allows the tariffs to remain in effect until mid-October to give the administration time to appeal to the Supreme Court.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit upheld a lower court’s May ruling that Trump did not have unlimited power to impose tariffs on nearly all imports to the United States. The legal basis for Trump’s tariffs relied on the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), a law from the 1970s primarily designed for sanctions and embargoes against foreign nations. Critics have long argued that using IEEPA to levy sweeping duties on dozens of trading partners overstepped executive authority.
The tariffs had been a cornerstone of Trump’s trade strategy, aimed at pressuring countries into favorable deals while raising revenue for the U.S. government. Officials from the former administration warned the court that a weakening of tariff powers could disrupt trade agreements, including deals with the European Union, which had negotiated concessions to avoid higher U.S. levies.
Trump, who promoted the tariffs as a way to “make America rich again,” claimed in a social media post that the court’s ruling threatened the country’s economic stability and hinted at a forthcoming appeal to the Supreme Court.
Economists and trade analysts have noted that while the court’s ruling undermines the legal foundation of Trump’s tariffs, leaving the duties in place temporarily mitigates immediate economic disruption. Businesses and state governments had challenged the tariffs, citing the burden on small enterprises and potential harm to domestic industries reliant on imported materials.
The appellate court’s decision also emphasizes limits on executive power in imposing trade penalties, raising questions about the future use of emergency economic powers in trade policy.
Legal experts predict that the case will almost certainly reach the Supreme Court, with the outcome likely to have far-reaching implications for U.S. trade relations and the use of unilateral executive authority in imposing tariffs.
