Supreme Court Rules Most of Trump’s Tariffs Are Illegal

The Supreme Court on Friday struck down President Donald Trump’s emergency tariffs, dealing a sharp blow to the centerpiece of his economic agenda and setting firm limits on how far presidents can go in using emergency powers to reshape global trade.

In a 6-to-3 decision that cut across ideological lines, the Justices ruled that Trump lacked the authority to impose sweeping import taxes by claiming a national emergency. The ruling immediately invalidates a broad set of tariffs that Trump imposed last year on nearly all imports, including so-called reciprocal duties on dozens of countries and additional levies tied to the fentanyl crisis.

The decision not only curtails a policy Trump has repeatedly credited with strengthening American leverage abroad, but also carries major financial and legal consequences. The government will no longer be able to collect tens of billions of dollars in tariff revenue under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, or IEEPA—a 1977 statute intended for national emergencies—and will soon face a wave of claims from companies seeking refunds for duties already paid.

Scores of businesses that paid the now-invalidated emergency tariffs are expected to press for refunds, setting up potentially complex litigation over billions of dollars already collected. As of late summer, the tariffs had raised roughly $89 billion, revenue the Administration had counted on to help finance tax cuts enacted last summer.

This is a breaking news story and will be updated.