A legal challenge against the tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump on Canadian imports has been initiated in the United States Court of International Trade.
The lawsuit was officially lodged on Tuesday by the non-profit organization Liberty Justice Center, acting on behalf of Gellert Global Group, a U.S.-based food importer. The core argument presented in the lawsuit is that President Trump’s utilization of a trade statute dating back to the Great Depression era exceeds his constitutional authority.
President Trump invoked Section 338 of the Tariff Act of 1930 to impose a 50 percent tariff on various Canadian products following the breakdown of trade negotiations in August. Subsequently, the same statute was employed in the subsequent month to ban the importation of additional Canadian goods, such as motorcycles, select alcohol, and dairy items.
Sara Albrecht, the CEO of Liberty Justice Center, expressed in a press statement that no sitting president should possess the ability to resurrect an outdated statute and leverage it to enforce broad tariffs or import prohibitions.
The lawsuit specifically demands the court to rule the tariffs as illegitimate and to mandate a reimbursement for the affected parties.
