Twenty five US states sue the Trump administration over its latest global tariffs

A coalition of 25 US states sued the administration of Donald Trump in the US Court of International Trade on Monday 3 August 2026, arguing that he exceeded his authority in imposing sweeping tariffs on goods from 60 trading partners. The duties are set at 10 or 12.5 percent on most goods imported from those economies, which the states say together account for 99.4 percent of US imports. The states are asking the court to halt the tariffs, declare them unlawful and order refunds of duties already paid.

At the centre of the case is the administration's use of Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 and its reliance on forced labour concerns, after two earlier versions of the tariff regime were rejected by the courts. The complaint says the US Trade Representative completed investigations into 60 economies in about two and a half months, bypassed required country specific consultations, and did not explain why nearly uniform rates suited economies with widely differing policies. The tariffs were announced on 23 July, one day before earlier temporary duties expired.

The White House rejected the argument. Spokesperson Kush Desai said the United States is using its lawful authority to eliminate practices that burden US commerce. This is at least the second legal challenge to the new duties.