Small US Businesses Sue Trump Administration Over New Section 301 Tariffs

Fresh legal challenges have been launched against US President Donald Trump's new Section 301 tariffs, with two lawsuits filed by small businesses arguing that the administration exceeded its legal authority by imposing sweeping import duties on 60 trading partners. The tariffs, announced on July 23, cover about 99 per cent of US imports and took effect after temporary worldwide tariffs expired.

The first lawsuit was filed on Friday in the US Court of International Trade by educational toy maker Learning Resources and several other small businesses. The company had successfully challenged Trump's previous worldwide tariffs before the US Supreme Court earlier this year.

A second lawsuit was filed by New York-based spice importer Burlap & Barrel and California watch retailer Collective Horology, represented by the Liberty Justice Center. The plaintiffs argue that the administration failed to demonstrate, on a country-by-country basis, how the tariffs satisfy the legal requirements of Section 301 or how the measures would effectively combat forced labour.

Liberty Justice Center Chair and CEO Sara Albrecht said that while forced labour is "morally indefensible", the government must still comply with the law. She accused the administration of replacing tariffs struck down by the Supreme Court with nearly identical measures under a different legal provision.

The White House had not responded to requests for comment at the time of publication.

The Trump administration says the tariffs follow months of investigations, public hearings and thousands of stakeholder submissions into whether 60 economies adequately prohibit imports made with forced labour. The policy includes exemptions for selected products and countries meeting specific criteria.

Trade lawyers, however, say these Section 301 tariffs could prove more difficult to overturn than the earlier measures invalidated by the Supreme Court because the statute has previously survived judicial scrutiny, including during Trump's first term.