Overview
- Oral arguments are scheduled for Wednesday, and the contested duties remain in force while the justices review the consolidated cases.
- Lower courts concluded Trump likely exceeded IEEPA authority but left the tariffs in place pending the Supreme Court’s decision.
- The Justice Department argues IEEPA’s power to “regulate importation” includes tariffs, while challengers say the statute never mentions tariffs and that such charges function as taxes on Americans.
- Administration lawyers are leaning on Judge Richard Taranto’s Federal Circuit dissent, and officials signal fallback options under Section 338, Section 232 and Section 301 if IEEPA is curtailed.
- Economic stakes are substantial, with about $90 billion collected through late September and potential refunds in the tens of billions if the duties are invalidated, as the Court weighs major-questions limits against foreign-affairs deference.