A federal appeals court has ruled that most of the President Donald Trump’s global tariffs were imposed illegally, but allowed them to remain in effect while the case undergoes further review.
In a closely watched 7-4 decision on Friday, the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit upheld an earlier ruling by the Court of International Trade, which found Trump had improperly invoked a 1977 emergency powers law to justify sweeping tariffs on imports. The appellate court, however, sent the case back to the lower court to decide whether the ruling applies broadly to all businesses affected or only to the specific plaintiffs in the case.
The decision leaves trillions of dollars in global trade hanging in the balance, with the ultimate fate of Trump’s tariffs likely to be determined by the Supreme Court. The White House could appeal directly to the high court or allow the lower court to reconsider the case first.
“ALL TARIFFS ARE STILL IN EFFECT!” Trump posted on Truth Social shortly after the ruling. He dismissed the judges’ conclusion as partisan and warned that lifting the tariffs would be “a total disaster for the Country.”
The legal challenge was led by a coalition of small businesses and Democratic-led states, who argued Trump wrongfully invoked the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) — a statute typically used to impose sanctions and asset freezes, not tariffs. The Court of International Trade had already ruled in May that trade deficits and drug trafficking did not constitute the kind of national emergency envisioned under the law.
The Trump administration, however, maintains the president acted lawfully. “President Trump lawfully exercised the tariff powers granted to him by Congress to defend our national and economic security from foreign threats,” White House spokesman Kush Desai said in a statement.
Ahead of Friday’s decision, the administration filed warnings from Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who argued that striking down the tariffs outright could trigger “dangerous diplomatic embarrassment” for the US.
The case — V.O.S. Selections v. Trump — centers on Trump’s so-called “Liberation Day” tariffs, which established a baseline 10% duty on global imports and expanded to include targeted levies on Mexico, China, and Canada, justified in part by the fentanyl crisis. Reciprocal tariffs imposed on dozens of nations that did not reach trade agreements with the administration are also under review.
The Federal Circuit’s ruling cited recent Supreme Court precedent cautioning against universal injunctions, suggesting the Court of International Trade must revisit whether its earlier ruling can apply beyond the direct parties involved.
