Liberty Justice Center Demands Immediate Refunds After Supreme Court Strikes Down IEEPA Tariffs

The Liberty Justice Center, along with co-counsel Neal Katyal, filed motions on February 24 in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and the U.S. Court of International Trade (CIT) to enforce last week’s Supreme Court decision in Trump v. V.O.S Selections et al. The Supreme Court ruled 6–3 that the Administration did not have authority under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) to impose broad tariffs. The legal team is now seeking immediate action to ensure refunds are issued to businesses affected by these tariffs.

At the Federal Circuit, plaintiffs requested the immediate issuance of the mandate, a procedural step required before the CIT can act on the Supreme Court’s decision. Without this mandate, jurisdiction remains with the appellate court and the lower court cannot implement the ruling. The Liberty Justice Center also filed a motion in the CIT for permanent injunctive relief. This motion asks the court to permanently block enforcement of IEEPA tariffs against their clients and to order government agencies to issue directives for refunding all unlawfully collected tariffs, including interest. The motion specifically directs U.S. Customs and Border Protection to begin processing and issuing refund checks.

Sara Albrecht, Chairman of the Liberty Justice Center, stated that while their clients and other American businesses won at the Supreme Court, further legal steps are necessary to ensure that refunds are actually delivered. She emphasized that American businesses have paid what she described as illegal and unconstitutional tariffs and that it is now up to the courts to make sure those funds are returned.

During litigation, government attorneys told courts that businesses would not be harmed by continued tariff collection during appeals because refunds would be automatic if the tariffs were ultimately struck down. These assurances were used as justification for allowing tariff collection to continue while legal challenges proceeded. However, after the Supreme Court’s decision, administration officials have indicated that refunds could take weeks, months, or even years to process.

Albrecht criticized this shift in position, saying that it is unacceptable for the government to delay refunds after promising automatic repayment if it lost in court. She argued that since the government unlawfully imposed a tax and collected money from American companies, those funds should be returned without delay.

There are more than 900 related cases currently pending at the CIT that have been stayed while awaiting resolution of this lead case. The Liberty Justice Center argues that prompt issuance of the mandate and entry of permanent relief will allow these cases to proceed and create a uniform process for issuing refunds.

Albrecht stressed that these refunds are owed to American companies employing American workers and called for compliance with the rule of law rather than further delays. The outcome of these motions will determine how quickly affected businesses receive compensation for tariffs collected under IEEPA without proper legal authority.