Attorney General Ellison secures significant victory in tariffs case

Federal circuit upholds ruling that the president does not have authority to impose these tariffs

September 2, 2025 (SAINT PAUL) — Today, Attorney General Keith Ellison lauded a ruling from the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals, which upheld a ruling from the Court of International Trade that the tariffs Attorney General Ellison challenged in court are unlawful. These tariffs include both the so-called reciprocal tariffs on nearly all countries worldwide and the separate tariffs on Canada, Mexico, and China that President Trump claimed were justified by concerns about drug trafficking. On Friday, August 29, a majority of the Federal Circuit concluded that the federal law the President invoked, the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), does not authorize the President to impose those tariffs. The Federal Circuit is the latest court to conclude that these tariffs are unlawful.  To date, every court that has considered the issue has concluded as much.

“President Trump’s tariffs are foolish, they are making things more expensive for folks across Minnesota, and another court just found that they are illegal too,” said Attorney General Ellison. “As I travel Minnesota, I continue to hear from people that prices are too high, and these reckless tariffs are only making that worse. My mission is to help Minnesotans afford their lives, so I had to stand up to Trump and challenge his illegal tariffs in court. As your attorney general, I will keep working hard to protect your pocketbook from fraudsters, scammers, and lawbreakers, including the one in the Oval Office.”

The court also affirmed the Court of International Trade’s declaratory judgment invalidating the tariffs, but it vacated the injunction ordering the federal government to stop collecting the tariffs. The court concluded that the Court of International Trade needs to take another look at the scope of the injunction based on the Supreme Court’s recent ruling in Trump v. CASA about the propriety of universal injunctions.

The case is led by Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield and Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes. Also joining the lawsuit, in addition to Attorney General Ellison, are the attorneys general of Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Nevada, New Mexico, New York and Vermont.