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Two U.S. businesses are suing the federal government over new Section 301 tariffs imposed last week, adding another chapter of legal scrutiny for the Trump administration’s duty-reliant trade policy.
The companies, spice importer Burlap and Barrel and watch retailer Collective Horology, are calling for the removal of the new levies and the payment of refunds, according to a lawsuit filed with the U.S. Court of International Trade on Friday.
In the filing, the businesses argue that the tariffs, installed to address forced labor regulations of more than 60 trading partners, are “arbitrary and capricious" and being used as a backdoor attempt to replace levies that were previously removed. The businesses also claim the Trump administration did not effectively follow or meet Section 301 requirements before imposing the duties.
The Section 301 tariffs went into place on Friday, the same day the lawsuit was filed and exactly 150 days after President Donald Trump implemented temporary Section 122 tariffs. Duties installed under the statute can remain in place for up to 150 days unless extended by an act of Congress. Trump instituted the Section 122 levies following a February Supreme Court decision that revoked sweeping tariffs he installed using the International Emergency Economic Powers Act the year prior, including a global baseline duty of 10%.
