Supreme Court to Hear Tariff Cases Against the Trump Administration

A group of small businesses filed the cases this spring after the Trump administration announced the tariffs on a broad array of imports. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

The Supreme Court has agreed to hear two cases against the Trump administration that allege that new tariffs on U.S. imports were imposed illegally. The cases, which will be combined, were filed by several small businesses in the spring after President Donald Trump first announced the levies.

The first suit, V.O.S. Selections v. Trump, was originally filed by a group of five businesses in April on the grounds that the tariffs would have “massive economic impacts that are likely to do severe damage to the global economy.”

The second suit, Learning Resources v. Trump, claimed that only Congress has the power to impose tariffs and challenged the president’s declaration of an emergency to invoke them.

The administration has said that the new levies have already brought in more than $100 billion in revenue and are on track to raise $300 billion this year. They are a key part of the president’s strategy to lower the deficit and increase U.S. manufacturing.

“Tariffs are making our country strong and rich!!!” he posted on Truth Social last month.

The administration filed a motion with the Supreme Court last week asking it to expedite the tariff challenges. As part of the motion, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent wrote that “delaying a ruling until June 2026 could result in a scenario in which $750 billion-$1 trillion in tariffs have already been collected.” Unwinding them could cause “significant disruption,” he said.

In granting the writ of certiorari for the consolidated cases, the Supreme Court also set the date for oral arguments for the first week of November.

The tariffs, which range from 10% to 50% on imports from various countries, remain in place for now. However, there are many exceptions and exemptions, such as goods covered under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement.

A White House spokesperson didn’t immediately respond to Barron’s request for comment.

Write to Anita Hamilton at anita.hamilton@barrons.com