AG Nessel Sues Trump Administration to Stop Latest Round of Illegal Tariffs

LANSING – Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel today joined a coalition of attorneys general in filing a lawsuit (PDF) to block President Trump’s latest efforts to impose illegal tariffs on American consumers and businesses. The case, as Attorney General Nessel explains in a video, challenges President Trump’s most recent efforts to increase tariffs worldwide without congressional approval.

“It is nothing new for the Trump administration to illegally defy or sidestep court orders at the expense of hardworking Americans,” said Attorney General Nessel. “This time, after the Supreme Court ruled against him, Donald Trump launched a new unlawful tariff policy that is expected to drain thousands of dollars a year from Michigan families. Congress, not the President, sets tariffs, and I will stand up for Michiganders against illegal policies wreaking havoc on working families' budgets.”

“Michigan has long felt the impacts of bad economic policies at the federal level. Now, tariffs have jacked up costs and cut jobs for families and businesses across our state,” said Governor Gretchen Whitmer. “Last month’s Supreme Court decision ruling on tariffs was a step forward, but we still face rising costs and competition from China. I’m calling on Congress and the president to come to the table to negotiate a more commonsense, strategic trade policy that builds on the USMCA, creates jobs, and lowers costs. I’ll keep fighting to grow our economy, bring jobs home from overseas, and provide relief to families. Let’s work with our neighbors and allies to build a bright future.”

For more than a year, President Trump has inflicted chaos on the American economy by imposing tariffs without the legal authority to do so. Initially, the President claimed that the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) allowed him to impose tariffs of any amount, on any product, from any country, for any length of time. Two weeks ago, the Supreme Court rejected that argument, concluding that the IEEPA tariffs were unlawful.

Rather than accepting that loss in court, President Trump immediately turned to a separate law that has never been used before—Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974—and announced 15 percent tariffs on most products worldwide, seemingly to address trade deficits. But Section 122 does not apply. That law authorizes tariffs in limited circumstances, including when there are “large and serious balance-of-payments deficits.” Notably, a trade deficit is not a balance-of-payment deficit, meaning that once again the President is acting unlawfully.

The average American household is paying at least $1,700 a year more because of tariffs. A recent analysis by researchers at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York concluded that nearly 90 percent of the costs of tariffs in 2025 were paid by American consumers and businesses. By imposing another round of price increases on American consumers and businesses, President Trump is doubling down on failed economic policies. For trade-dependent states like Michigan, the nation’s 5th largest importer, tariffs directly hit workers, families and the local economy. Last year alone, food prices in Michigan rose by 3.6 percent and construction materials jumped by 7 percent.

Today’s lawsuit challenges this latest round of tariffs. The complaint contends that these actions by President Trump and his administration violate the law, upend constitutional separation of powers, and violate the Administrative Procedure Act.

The case is entitled State of Oregon, et al., v. Trump, et al. and was filed in the U.S. Court of International Trade.

Joining Attorney General Nessel in filing this lawsuit are the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin, as well as the governors of Kentucky and Pennsylvania.

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