Trump Rebuilds Tariff Framework After Supreme Court Ruling

The Administration under President Donald Trump has launched a sweeping series of trade investigations targeting roughly 60 economies as it works to rebuild its tariff policy after the Supreme Court of the United States struck down many of the president’s earlier global duties. The probes, led by Jamieson Greer at the Office of the United States Trade Representative under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, will examine issues including foreign policies related to goods produced with forced labor and alleged excess manufacturing capacity in major trading partners.



The investigation spans a broad group of economies—including China, Canada, the United Kingdom, the European Union, Japan, and India—and will assess whether their trade policies or enforcement practices disadvantage U.S. workers and companies. If the administration determines that the practices unfairly burden U.S. commerce, the findings could pave the way for new tariffs.

The investigations are part of a broader effort to establish a more legally durable path for tariffs before temporary duties imposed earlier this year under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974 expire in July. Officials say the inquiries could provide the legal basis to replace tariffs invalidated by the court, continuing Trump’s broader strategy of using trade enforcement to protect domestic industries and gain leverage in global trade negotiations.

Meanwhile, the administration is also working to return billions of dollars in tariffs that the court ruled were unlawfully collected. Officials at U.S. Customs and Border Protection told the U.S. Court of International Trade that a new refund system is more than 40 percent complete and will undergo additional performance testing in the coming weeks.

In a filing to the court, CBP said the software includes four major components that are between 40 and 80 percent developed. Once operational, the system is expected to automate most repayments, significantly reducing what officials previously estimated could require more than 4.4 million hours of manual processing across more than 53 million import entries.

Judge Richard K. Eaton, who is overseeing the refund process, said the government has made “satisfactory progress” but ordered another update within a week. He emphasized the urgency of returning roughly $166 billion in tariffs with interest, which is increasing the total by about $650 million each month, as refunds are delayed.

The refunds stem from a 6–3 ruling in which the Supreme Court determined that Trump could not rely on the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to impose sweeping global tariffs. 

The dispute is unfolding as the administration has already replaced the invalidated tariffs with a new 10 percent levy on most imports under a different legal authority, a move that has prompted additional litigation. At the same time, consumer lawsuits and some Democratic lawmakers are pressing to ensure that refunded tariff money ultimately reaches consumers rather than remaining with importing companies.