SCOTUS Tariff Decision Impacts And Next Steps

On Friday, February 20, the Supreme Court issued its decision in the consolidated cases of Learning Resources, Inc. v. Trump and Trump v. V.O.S. Selections, Inc., holding that the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) does not authorize the President to impose tariffs. The case challenged the Trump administration's February executive orders imposing "trafficking tariffs" on imports from China, Mexico, and Canada (targeting fentanyl and illegal immigration) and the April 2025 order imposing sweeping "reciprocal tariffs" on imports from most other countries to address trade deficits. Both the Court of International Trade (CIT) and the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) previously ruled that IEEPA does not authorize such tariffs. Approximately $160 billion to $175 billion in IEEPA tariffs have been collected to date.