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The
tariffs, implemented under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974
for what the Trump administration says is countries' failure to
prevent imports produced by forced labor, cover 99% of U.S.
imports. Critics say the goal is less to prevent forced-labor
imports and more to replace the worldwide tariffs that Trump
imposed last year that were struck down by the Supreme Court in
February. They came just as temporary 10% worldwide tariffs —
that had also been challenged in court — expired.
Educational toy company Learning Resources, which was part of
the tariff lawsuit that won in the Supreme Court, filed a new
suit along with several other small businesses in the Court of
International Trade on Friday over the current round of tariffs.
The second lawsuit was filed by Burlap and Barrel, a New
York-based spice company, and Collective Horology, a watch
retailer based in Ventura, California. They are represented by
Liberty Justice Center, a libertarian advocacy group.
Both lawsuits argue that the government didn't adequately
establish its case against each specific economy or spell how
the tariffs will eliminate the specified practice they are being
levied for, as required by Section 301.
“Forced labor is morally indefensible, but an important
objective does not give the government permission to ignore the
law,” said Sara Albrecht, chairman and CEO of the Liberty
Justice Center. “The administration allowed one global tariff to
expire and immediately replaced it with another under a
different statute. Changing the statute doesn’t change the law.”
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for
comment.
Experts say it might be tougher to successfully challenge the
current round of tariffs than previous rounds. Trump used
Section 301 to impose big tariffs on China in his first term,
and they survived court challenges.
Unlike the Section 122 levies that expired Friday, “these
tariffs will be with us for the long haul,’’ said lawyer Patrick
Childress, a partner at Holland & Knight and a former U.S. trade
official.
Even if countries enact the precise policies the U.S. wants, he
said, they will still need to prove that they’re enforcing them
to Washington’s satisfaction before the tariffs are removed.
“This suggests that no short-term path for country-wide relief
from the new Section 301 tariffs will be available.’’
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