Tariff Battle Shifts into US Court of International Trade
WASHINGTON – LEGAL – A new legal challenge has landed against President Donald Trump’s tariffs on Canada, and for anyone here who has watched grocery prices creep up or worried about a shipment of dairy, alcohol or motorcycles getting hung up at the border, this one is worth paying attention to.
The lawsuit was filed Tuesday in the United States Court of International Trade by the non-profit Liberty Justice Center, acting on behalf of U.S. food importer Gellert Global Group.
The case argues that Trump overstepped his authority as president by relying on a Depression-era trade law to justify the tariffs.
That law is Section 338, a statute dating back to 1930.
Liberty Justice Center CEO Sara Albrecht told CBC’s Katie Simpson, in an interview from Chicago, that the provision has essentially sat untouched for nearly a century until now.
“Using the Section 338, which is, in my opinion, a dormant statute from 1930 that has never been used before, just said to us that this is wrong and we should do something about it,” Albrecht said.
Trump invoked Section 338 to impose a 50 per cent levy on a range of Canadian goods after trade negotiations between the two countries fell apart in August. A month later, the same statute was used again, this time to block imports of other Canadian products, including motorcycles and certain alcohol and dairy goods.
The White House has defended its use of the law, saying Section 338 gives the president authority to impose tariffs when another country puts American exporters at a disadvantage compared with exporters from other nations. The lawsuit notes, however, that the statute has never before been applied for that purpose in its history.
U.S. officials have pointed to a handful of Canadian policies as justification for the latest round of duties: provincial restrictions on U.S. liquor sales, Canada’s supply managed dairy system, and quotas placed on certain U.S. vehicles. Tuesday’s lawsuit pushes back directly on that reasoning, arguing those Canadian policies do not justify the scale of the tariffs the Trump administration has rolled out.
What it means for residents
For people who work in food distribution, run small import businesses, or simply buy Canadian dairy, alcohol or vehicles, this lawsuit is one to watch closely. If the Court of International Trade sides with the Liberty Justice Center, it could unwind tariffs that have already reshaped what’s available on store shelves and what it costs to bring certain goods across the border.
Even those with no direct business ties to cross-border trade are likely feeling some of the ripple effects already, whether in higher prices at the grocery store or in uncertainty for local companies that rely on Canadian suppliers or customers. Anyone who has family or friends across the border, or who has watched local businesses navigate the back-and-forth over tariffs since August, knows this fight is not just a Washington story. It is one that touches daily life here too.
As someone who lives right here in this community and writes for the neighbors reading this, not for visitors passing through, it is worth saying plainly: trade disputes like this one rarely stay abstract for long. They show up in receipts, in shipping delays, and in conversations at the dinner table about why a favorite import suddenly costs more or is harder to find.
The case does not come with a resolution yet. The source material does not indicate when the Court of International Trade might rule, so there is no timeline to share at this point. What is clear is that the tariffs themselves have been in place since August, when the 50 per cent levy took effect, and expanded in September with the import ban on additional Canadian goods.
For now, the lawsuit sits with the court. Residents who want to follow developments should keep an eye on reporting from CBC, which first brought this story forward, as more details emerge about how the case proceeds and what it could mean for the tariffs already affecting shelves and businesses on both sides of the border.
