25 US states sue Trump administration over ‘forced labour’ tariffs, claim move exceeds presidential authority

Published 4 August 2026 · politics

25 US states have together filed a lawsuit against the new tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump last month, in which they have claimed

25 US states have together filed a lawsuit against the new tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump last month, in which they have claimed that the US government exceeded its authority by doing so. New York, California and Illinois were among the states which filed the lawsuit in the US Court of International Trade in Manhattan on Monday (local time). As per the lawsuits, Trump and officials of his administration used Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 after his earlier tariffs were either struck down by the US Supreme Court or expired. “After losing at the Supreme Court, the administration is once again trying to illegally raise taxes on families and businesses with a new round of tariffs,” New York Attorney General Letitia James said in a statement, as per a Bloomberg report.

Also Read | Amazon to refund customers after receiving ₹5,250 crore from Trump tariff ruling “No matter how the administration tries to justify it, the law and our Constitution are clear that the president does not have the power to impose sweeping tariffs on whatever countries he wants," James added. What are the new tariffs? Trump, under his new tariffs, has imposed 10 to 12.5% duties on imports from 60 trading partner countries, claiming that they are using forced labour to produce some goods that are imported into the United States. The states have alleged that the US government is invoking provisions of the trade law in an improper manner, and that the new duties are acting “as an implementation of the president’s broad tariff policy rather than the kind of tailored measure authorized under Section 301," as per Bloomberg.

The latest tariff action on the US' trading partners comes in the wake of the SCOTUS ruling out Trump's global tariff push in February, which he had issued under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, or IEEPA. After this, Trump imposed another round of 10% global tariffs under Section 122 of the Trade Act, which were also ruled out as illegal by a trade court. These tariffs stayed in effect during an appeal and expired in July. What is Section 301? As per Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, under the direction of the US President, the US Trade Representative can impose tariffs as a form of response to trade practices carried out by other countries which are either deemed discriminatory by the US government to American businesses.

In an earlier suit filed by two small companies (spice importer Burlap and Barrel Inc. and watch retailer Collective Horology LLC), they claimed that the new tariffs do not reflect the "country-wise inquiry" carried out by the US government, which the US Congress had deemed necessary when Section 301 was adopted.