FedEx has filed a lawsuit seeking a full refund of the money it paid to satisfy President Trump’s tariffs, making it the first major company to seek redress after the Supreme Court struck down certain levies.
The complaint, filed this week in the U.S. Court of International Trade, says the parcel company should be repaid, with interest, after the justices held that Mr. Trump usurped Congress’ taxing power by issuing tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act.
“Plaintiffs seek for themselves a full refund from Defendants of all IEEPA duties plaintiffs have paid to the United States,” the lawsuit says.
The lawsuit does not provide an estimate of how much money FedEx paid because of the IEEPA tariffs.
Several companies, including the popular wholesaler Costco, sued ahead of the Supreme Court ruling to lock in refunds. The FedEx lawsuit suggests more could be on their way.
Budget models show the government could owe up to $175 billion in refunds for money collected under the now-illegal IEEPA tariffs.
The justices did not outline whether, or how, that money should be repaid, remanding the issue to lower courts for litigation. The Trump administration says that litigation will likely take months.
Business groups made clear, however, that they expect to be repaid and think it should not be difficult for U.S. Customs and Border Protection to update its payment systems to facilitate repayment.
The Liberty Justice Center, which represented plaintiffs in the Supreme Court case, said Tuesday it filed motions in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and the U.S. Court of International Trade in a bid to enforce the ruling and start refunds.
“Liberty Justice Center won at the Supreme Court last week on behalf of our five clients and all American businesses that have had to pay illegal, unjust and unconstitutional tariffs, but the fight isn’t over,” said Sara Albrecht, chair of the Liberty Justice Center. “Now we are asking the courts to ensure the government honors its commitments and refunds American businesses.”
The U.S. government stopped collecting IEEPA tariff payments on Tuesday and began collecting new tariffs issued by Mr. Trump under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974. The tariffs are valid for 150 days, after which Congress must renew them.
The tariffs started at a 10% global rate, but Mr. Trump said he will increase them to 15%.
