The US Court of International Trade has ruled the Trump administration’s attempts to impose global tariffs are illegal.
In a ruling filed yesterday (28 May), the federal court concluded that tariffs imposed by President Trump using the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) “exceed any authority granted to the President”.
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In a follow-up statement, the court added that the tariffs are therefore “invalid and cannot be implemented”.
New York State attorney general Laetitia James was part of the coalition of 11 other attorneys who sued the Trump administration over imposing the worldwide tariffs.
James said in the statement: “The law is clear: no president has the power to single-handedly raise taxes whenever they like. These tariffs are a massive tax hike on working families and American businesses that would have led to more inflation, economic damage to businesses of all sizes, and job losses across the country if allowed to continue.
“This decision is a major victory for our efforts to uphold the law and protect New Yorkers from illegal policies that threaten American jobs and economy.”
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By GlobalDataJudges ruled that the law does not authorise any of the tariffs imposed through the IEEPA, and the administration’s attempt to do so was “invalid as contrary to law”.
These include the tariffs on China, Canada, Mexico and Europe, which range from 10%-30%.
Tariffs implemented on cars, steel and aluminum, however, were not included in the ruling, as these fall under a separate law, according to the BBC, which said the Trump administration has appealed the ruling.
The Trump administration has 10 days to reverse the tariffs, the BBC said, although the majority have been paused until July.
Ignacio Sánchez Recarte, the secretary general of the European wine trade body CEEV, said: “We welcome this announcement because we are opposed to any tariff on wine, but we do it calmly. Considering the appeal announced by the Trump administration, it is still unclear what the final outcome of the ruling will be.”
He added that the news should “not put in pause the Euro-American dialogue, which the European Commission has already initiated”.
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