The court's decision was made with a 6-3 vote. Justices Brett Kavanaugh, Clarence Thomas, and Samuel Alito dissented, pointing out that Trump exceeded his authority by using the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) to impose "reciprocal" tariffs and targeted duties, justifying it as a fight against the illegal trafficking of fentanyl.
The court emphasized that the term "tariff" does not appear in the text of the IEEPA, and no president before Trump had used this law to impose duties for nearly 50 years of its existence.
The Supreme Court did not decide how to refund the duties already paid, passing this question to a lower court. It is expected that the amount of refunds could reach up to $170 billion, which exceeds half of all tariff revenues. Justice Kavanaugh warned that this could lead to "chaos".
The lawsuit against the tariffs was filed in April 2025 by educational toy manufacturers Learning Resources and hand2mind, who primarily import their products from China. They claimed that their costs rose from $2.3 million to $100 million due to the tariffs. A group of small businesses led by V.O.S. Selections also approached the court. In May 2025, lower courts ruled the tariffs illegal, and in August, this decision was upheld by the appellate court.
In September, the Supreme Court consolidated the cases and expedited the review, with oral arguments taking place on November 5, where the majority of justices expressed doubts about the administration's position.
After the decision was announced, the White House stated its intention to reinstate tariffs using other legal mechanisms, noting that alternative tools may be more complex or have a more limited scope. However, the court's decision does not affect tariffs on steel, copper, and aluminum imposed under a different law - Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962.
On the same day, Trump announced the introduction of a new global tariff of 10% for a period of 150 days, which will be in addition to the existing duties. The new order will be based on Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974.
Section 122 allows for tariffs of up to 15% for a period of up to 150 days in the presence of serious balance of payments issues without the need for investigations. At the same time, the administration began investigations under Section 301 of the same law regarding "unfair trade practices" by other countries.
Trump stated, "We have alternatives, great alternatives. This could bring in more money. We will get more money and become significantly stronger."
The new tariffs are temporary, and the procedures under Section 301 may take several months.
At the same time, the U.S. Department of Commerce published data on a record trade deficit, which amounted to $1.2 trillion for the year 2025. When considering services, the figure reached $901.5 billion - one of the highest in recent decades. Exports of goods and services increased by 6.2% to a record $3.4 trillion, while imports grew by nearly 5% to $4.3 trillion.
