Policies & IssuesSep 05, 2025
Trump Takes Tariffs Case to the Supreme Court Policies & IssuesSep 11, 2025
Supreme Court to Hear Tariffs Case in November
A decision likely won’t come until January 2026 at the earliest, and the tariffs remain in effect until then.
The Supreme Court will hear a case involving the legality of President Donald Trump’s tariffs, which were enacted via a series of executive orders earlier this year. The case will be heard during the first week of November.
Washington, D.C.—The Supreme Court will hear the case involving the sweeping slate of tariffs President Donald Trump imposed earlier this year.
In a brief order issued Tuesday, the court said it would hear arguments in the case during the first week of November, granting the Trump administration’s request for an expedited review.
The legal battle over the tariffs began in April when five small businesses, including lead plaintiff V.O.S. Selections Inc., a family-run wine importer, sued the Trump administration in the U.S. Court of International Trade (CIT).
A separate suit by 12 states, led by Oregon, followed.
At issue in the case is Trump’s use of the International Economic Emergency Powers Act (IEEPA) to impose tariffs, a 1977 law that grants the president the authority to declare a national emergency and take action to deal with an “unusual and extraordinary threat.”
Trump used the IEEPA to impose levies on goods from Canada and Mexico in return for what his administration said was their role in allowing fentanyl to enter into the United States, and on China for failing to stop the flow of synthetic opioids into the U.S., known collectively as the “trafficking tariffs.”
The president invoked the IEEPA again in April when he announced a 10 percent duty on goods from all trading partners (the “worldwide tariffs”) and unveiled a list of countries whose imports will face higher rates, ranging from 11-50 percent (the “retaliatory” tariffs).
The president imposed these tariffs in response to a national emergency related to what he views as an imbalance in the U.S. trade relationships and tariff rates.
The CIT, which has jurisdiction over civil actions that involve U.S. customs and trade law, consolidated the two cases into one.
In May, the court ruled in favor of the businesses and states.
It declared the tariffs invalid, writing in its ruling that the IEEPA does not give the president “unbounded authority” to “impose unlimited tariffs on goods from nearly every country in the world.”
Related stories will be right here …
In a brief order issued Tuesday, the court said it would hear arguments in the case during the first week of November, granting the Trump administration’s request for an expedited review.
The legal battle over the tariffs began in April when five small businesses, including lead plaintiff V.O.S. Selections Inc., a family-run wine importer, sued the Trump administration in the U.S. Court of International Trade (CIT).
A separate suit by 12 states, led by Oregon, followed.
At issue in the case is Trump’s use of the International Economic Emergency Powers Act (IEEPA) to impose tariffs, a 1977 law that grants the president the authority to declare a national emergency and take action to deal with an “unusual and extraordinary threat.”
Trump used the IEEPA to impose levies on goods from Canada and Mexico in return for what his administration said was their role in allowing fentanyl to enter into the United States, and on China for failing to stop the flow of synthetic opioids into the U.S., known collectively as the “trafficking tariffs.”
The president invoked the IEEPA again in April when he announced a 10 percent duty on goods from all trading partners (the “worldwide tariffs”) and unveiled a list of countries whose imports will face higher rates, ranging from 11-50 percent (the “retaliatory” tariffs).
The president imposed these tariffs in response to a national emergency related to what he views as an imbalance in the U.S. trade relationships and tariff rates.
The CIT, which has jurisdiction over civil actions that involve U.S. customs and trade law, consolidated the two cases into one.
In May, the court ruled in favor of the businesses and states.
It declared the tariffs invalid, writing in its ruling that the IEEPA does not give the president “unbounded authority” to “impose unlimited tariffs on goods from nearly every country in the world.”
The Trump administration appealed the CIT’s decision to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.
The appeals court agreed with the CIT that the tariffs are illegal but it stayed (paused) its decision until Oct. 10 to allow the government time to appeal to the Supreme Court, a normal procedural action, Jewelers Vigilance Committee President, CEO, and General Counsel Sara Yood said.
Yood was speaking Wednesday in Carlsbad, California, at Converge, the new event organized by the American Gem Society and the Gemological Institute of America.
In her session, “Gold, Gems, and Global Headwinds: Trade and Tariffs in Focus,” Yood also addressed the potential timeline for the Supreme Court’s decision.
She said decisions for cases heard in November can be issued in January, though it could take until June.
The tariffs will remain in place pending the Supreme Court’s ruling.
Yood said those interested in tracking the case can do so on SCOTUSblog.com, an independent news site that tracks the court.
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