Appeals Court Rejects Trump’s Tariffs

A federal appeals court has struck down President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs, ruling that his administration overstepped its legal authority by invoking emergency powers to impose duties on goods, according to the court filing.

A federal court blocked Trump’s emergency tariff orders in May, ruling that the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) does not authorize the sweeping reciprocal tariffs he imposed in April. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on Aug. 29 upheld a lower court decision invalidating five executive orders that levied tariffs under the IEEPA.

Writing for the majority, the judges said that the IEEPA’s authorization to “regulate importation” does not grant the president the power to unilaterally impose taxes on trade. The dispute centered on two sets of tariffs issued early in 2025.

The first, dubbed the “Trafficking Tariffs,” followed Trump’s declaration of a national emergency at the southern border. Citing the flow of opioids and criminal activity from Mexico, Canada, and China, Trump ordered 25% duties on nearly all Mexican and Canadian imports and a 10% duty on Chinese goods, later raised to 20%.

The second package, the “Reciprocal Tariffs,” was broader. In April 2025, Trump imposed a baseline 10% duty on imports from almost every U.S. trading partner, with additional duties ranging up to 50% depending on the country. China’s rate was