Supreme Court Agrees to Fast-Track Trump’s Tariff Appeal

It will be the first time the high court has decided on the legality of a major policy from President Trump’s second term. In the eight months since his inauguration, Trump’s far-reaching agenda has been challenged by opponents in numerous lawsuits. The justices have at times weighed in by allowing or blocking his actions on a temporary basis, but no case has been litigated to a conclusion so far. 

The tariffs, which were dealt a string of defeats in the lower courts, are set to remain in place until the case is decided. 

The Trump administration had asked the Supreme Court to hear the challenge on an expedited schedule, saying the legal uncertainty was already hurting the White House in ongoing trade negotiations.

A wine importer and other small businesses that challenged the tariffs also asked for swift resolution, saying they were “suffering severe economic hardships as a result of the price increases and supply chain interruptions caused by the tariffs.” Those pains threatened the survival of at least one small business in the group, they told the Supreme Court. 

The trade case raises little-explored questions about the president’s unilateral power over the economy. Trump has said that a 1977 law gives him broad powers to impose baseline levies of 10% on virtually every nation, and much higher rates for countries that don’t cut deals with the U.S., as well as an additional set of tariffs for Canada, China and Mexico.

Several courts so far have found that the law, the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, doesn’t authorize Trump to do these things. Those include a federal appeals court and the U.S. Court of International Trade, which both ruled for the wine importer, as well as another federal district court that heard a separate tariff challenge brought by an educational toy company. The Supreme Court on Tuesday agreed to hear both cases. A coalition of 12 Democratic state attorneys general are also suing over the tariffs.

 

WSJ’s Gavin Bade explains the earlier ruling by an appeals court and its implications. Photo: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

---

Trump has continued to make trade deals while the litigation has been working its way through the courts, including agreements with the European Union, Indonesia, the Philippines and Japan.