A federal judge on Wednesday ordered the Trump Administration to refund $130 billion in tariffs.
The US Supreme Court recently struck down President Trump’s tariffs in a 6-3 decision.
The Supreme Court said President Trump does not have the authority to impose the tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA).
The high court’s decision only invalidates Trump’s tariffs under the IEEPA.
Chief Justices Roberts, Amy Coney Barrett, and Neil Gorsuch sided with the three liberal justices.
Conservative Justices Alito, Clarence Thomas, and Brett Kavanaugh sided with President Trump.
In his dissent, Kavanaugh warned that refunding the tariffs would be a ‘mess.’
The Trump Administration asked for a 90-day delay in refunding the tariffs, but the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals denied the request on Monday.
The Federal Circuit Court of Appeals on Monday rejected the Trump Administration’s request to delay the Supreme Court’s ruling on tariffs.
On Wednesday, Judge Richard Eaton, a Clinton appointee, said the Trump Administration must begin refunding $130 billion in tariffs.
Fox News reported:
A federal judge ordered the Trump administration on Wednesday to begin the drawn-out task of refunding billions of dollars to companies that paid tariffs the Supreme Court recently invalidated.
Judge Richard Eaton, an appointee of former President Bill Clinton, laid out the estimated $130 billion refund process in a three-page order, saying it would begin with U.S. Customs and Border Protection calculating what importers would have paid without the now-invalid tariffs. Eaton also made clear he had sole jurisdiction over the refunds, which more than 1,000 companies have sued over in the U.S. Court of International Trade.
“The Chief Judge has indicated that I am the only judge who will hear cases pertaining to the refund of [International Emergency Economic Powers Act] duties,” Eaton wrote. “So there is no danger that another Judge, even one in this Court, will reach any contrary conclusions.”
The case in question was brought by Atmus Filtration, Inc., a company that paid President Donald Trump’s tariffs, which Trump imposed on nearly every country on an emergency basis under IEEPA last year.
Last week FedEx filed a lawsuit seeking a refund.
“Plaintiffs seek for themselves a full refund from Defendants of all IEEPA duties Plaintiffs have paid to the United States,” the lawsuit said.
