Cheese importer sues over Trump's 50% tariffs on Canadian goods
A New Jersey cheese importer has sued the Trump administration over 50% tariffs on many Canadian goods. The tariffs rely on a 1930 law that had never been used to set a tariff before. The White House says it will defend the tariffs in court.
A New Jersey food importer sued the Trump administration on Tuesday over 50% tariffs on a range of Canadian goods, CNBC and the New York Post reported. The suit challenges the use of a rarely used Depression-era law to set the tariffs.
Gellert Global Group filed the complaint in the US Court of International Trade. The company imports cheeses that are covered by the tariffs, CNBC reported. Gellert estimates the tariffs will cost it $40 million a year, according to the New York Post. Last year it imported $71 million worth of Canadian cheese, including brie, mascarpone and camembert.
President Donald Trump used Section 338 of the Tariff Act of 1930 to put the tariffs on Canadian hockey sticks, wine, honey, wigs and other products, CNBC reported. It was the first time the 96-year-old law had been used to impose a tariff. Trump said Canada was treating US autos, alcohol and dairy unfairly.
The complaint calls Section 338 "a relic of the retaliation-based tariff policy" and says later laws have replaced it. It asks the court to declare the tariffs unlawful, block them and order refunds with interest. It also argues the administration did not meet the law's own requirements, because the Canadian actions Trump cited "do not discriminate against the United States."
Gellert is represented by the Liberty Justice Center, the group that successfully challenged Trump's "reciprocal" tariffs at the Supreme Court. "No president should have the power to pull a dormant statute off the shelf," said Sara Albrecht, the group's chief executive.
The White House defended the tariffs. "The Administration will defend vigorously the President's actions in court," it said in a statement quoted by the New York Post.
Canada answered with its own "dollar for dollar" tariffs on US goods after trade talks collapsed, CNBC reported.
What we know: Gellert Global Group has asked the trade court to strike down the Section 338 tariffs and order refunds.
What we don't: How quickly the court will rule on the request to block the tariffs.
Where outlets agree CNBC and the New York Post both report that Gellert Global Group, represented by the Liberty Justice Center, sued in the Court of International Trade over 50% Section 338 tariffs.
Where they differ CNBC says the 50% tariffs took effect on August 22, while the New York Post says they became effective on September 9.