New Jersey importer sues Trump over 50% Canadian tariffs

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 20 Oct, 21:32 · Archive

A New Jersey food importer has filed a lawsuit challenging President Trump's authority to levy 50% tariffs on Canadian goods under a Depression-era law.

The Gellert Global Group, a third-generation family business importing Canadian cheese, filed a lawsuit on Tuesday challenging President Trump's authority to levy 50% tariffs on $20 billion worth of Canadian goods. The case was brought to the U.S. Court of International Trade, a specialized court in New York.

Trump invoked Section 338 of the Tariff Act of 1930 in August to impose the tariffs on Canada, prompting dollar-for-dollar retaliation from Ottawa. Last month, the president escalated the conflict by announcing an outright ban on nearly $1 billion of Canadian products, including alcoholic beverages, dairy products and motorcycles.

The Gellert firm is represented by the Liberty Justice Center, a libertarian advocacy group. Sara Albrecht, chair of the Liberty Justice Center, said: 'No president should have the power to pull a dormant statute off the shelf and use it to impose sweeping tariffs or import bans without the limits Congress required.' The group successfully challenged previous Trump tariffs before the Supreme Court earlier this year.

This is the first time Section 338 tariff authority has been used in a trade dispute or tested in court. Trump previously sought to impose tariffs using a 1977 law, but the Supreme Court struck down those tariffs in February, forcing the administration to refund billions of dollars to importers.

How it is being reported

• New Jersey food importer files lawsuit challenging Trump's 50% tariffs on Canadian goodsA New Jersey food importer filed a lawsuit Tuesday challenging President Donald Trump’s power to invoke a Depression-era law to levy a 50% tariff on $20 billion worth of Canadian goods.Clickorlando · 20 Oct, 21:03
• New Jersey food importer files lawsuit challenging Trump's 50% tariffs on Canadian goodsA New Jersey food importer filed a lawsuit Tuesday challenging President Donald Trump’s power to invoke a Depression-era law to levy a 50% tariff on $20 billion worth of Canadian goods.News4Jax · 20 Oct, 21:03

In this story: Gellert Global Group · Trump · Liberty Justice Center · Sara Albrecht · U.S. Court of International Trade · New Jersey · Canada · Ottawa

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