Conservative legal group sues Trump admin over ‘unlawful use of emergency power’ to impose tariffs

A conservative legal group sued the Trump administration Thursday for imposing tariffs through an “unlawful use of emergency power.”

Trump bypassed Congress’ authority to place constraints on tariffs by declaring a national emergency, imposing tariffs on China using the International Emergency Economic Powers Act of 1977 (IEEPA), according the lawsuit filed by the New Civil Liberties Alliance (NCLA).

“[I]n the IEEPA’s almost 50-year history, no previous president has used it to impose tariffs,” the lawsuit states. “Which is not surprising, since the statute does not even mention tariffs, nor does it say anything else suggesting it authorizes presidents to tax American citizens.”

The plaintiff, a Florida-based small business known as Simplified, claims it is facing “economic and competitive harm” due to the higher costs on products purchased from China. The lawsuit cites Trump’s previous executive orders, including an additional 10% tariff Trump imposed on China in February and a 20% tariff he imposed in March.

NCLA senior litigation counsel John Vecchione told the Daily Caller News Foundation that the “same analysis” applies to Trump’s newest tariffs issued under IEEPA.

Trump declared “Liberation Day” on Wednesday when he announced reciprocal tariffs on nations charging imports from the United States, with a baseline of 10%.

“For decades, our country has been looted, pillaged, raped and plundered by nations near and far, both friend and foe alike. American steel workers, auto workers, farmers and skilled craftsmen,” Trump said Wednesday. “We have a lot of them here with us today. They really suffered gravely. They watched in anguish as foreign leaders have stolen our jobs.”

Trump imposed a 34% tariff on China Wednesday as well. China responded Friday with a retaliatory 34% tariff on imports from the United States.

While Trump is speaking, a WH official passes out a packet outlining how countries tariff the United States and what America will now charge them.

Each country is charged about 50% of what they charge the U.S. pic.twitter.com/wisNSTt7Ca

— Reagan Reese (@reaganreese_) April 2, 2025

“By invoking emergency power to impose an across-the-board tariff on imports from China that the statute does not authorize, President Trump has misused that power, usurped Congress’s right to control tariffs, and upset the Constitution’s separation of powers,” NCLA senior litigation counsel Andrew Morris said in a statement.

The White House did not respond to a request for comment.

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