Supreme Court Rules Against Trump’s Presidential Tariff Authority

This story is developing and will be updated regularly as further information becomes available.

The Supreme Court has struck down a major portion of President Trump’s tariff policies, which will likely cascade into far reaching implications for global trade and supply chain management.

The question presented to the court was whether the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) authorized the President to impose tariffs. The Supreme Court ruled that the IEEPA does not authorize the President to impose tariffs, holding that tariffs are a core taxing power reserved to Congress and that Congress did not clearly delegate that authority in the statute. The Court vacated one lower-court decision for jurisdictional reasons but otherwise affirmed judgments striking down the tariffs, rejecting the administration’s claim that broad emergency powers allowed sweeping, unilateral tariff policy.

In response to the ruling, industry leaders have made the following comments.

Per Hong, Global Lead - Foresight, Kearney:

SCOTUS’s ruling doesn’t remove supply chain volatility. From a supply chain point of view, while the Court’s ruling alters the legal pathway for tariffs, it doesn’t remove trade policy volatility from the system. For global supply chains, the practical question is less about refunds and more about fragmentation. If IEEPA authority is constrained, other instruments, like sections 301 and 232, remain available, potentially creating a more layered and episodic tariff environment.

This only reinforces the structural shift already under way, that trade policy is no longer an external shock to manage, but a standing design variable in sourcing strategy and capital allocation. Therefore, firms that institutionalize geopolitical foresight rather than react to each ruling will gain a competitive advantage.

Alex Saric, Procurement and Supply Chain Expert, Ivalua:

“The damage is already done. Companies have restructured sourcing networks, absorbed margin pressure and invested heavily in diversification. A Supreme Court reversal does not undo past disruptions or eliminate the risk of new tariffs under a different authority. Businesses that retreat back to single-region sourcing to chase short-term cost relief risk repeating the same vulnerability. Trade volatility isn’t an occasional shock anymore; it’s a permanent operating reality. CPOs should treat this moment not as relief, but as validation of the need for dynamic supply chain planning.”

Andrei Quinn-Barabanov, Supply Chain Industry Practice Lead, Moody’s:

“Following the Supreme Court ruling against country-based tariffs, the administration may impose additional commodity-based tariffs. This could trigger another round of exemption requests and international trade negotiations, potentially prolonging the tariff rate uncertainty and resulting sourcing paralysis well into 2026. Making prudent, long-term sourcing decisions becomes difficult when you can only make solid assumptions about tariffs for some potential vendors, but not for others. This sourcing paralysis may temporarily keep tariff-affected customers and suppliers in an uneasy status quo, leading to 2026 supplier negotiations that are more adversarial and short-term in their outlook.” 

President Trump responded to the Court's ruling during a press conference, in which he outlined the administration's course of action, partially covered in the below @WhiteHouse X post. In short, all national security tariffs, Section 232 and Section 301 tariffs, will remain in place and in effect. President Trump also intends to sign an executive order to impose a 10% global tariff, under Section 122, over and above in-effect tariffs.

Find additional Endeavor B2B coverage and industry-specific implications of the ruling below.

• IndustryWeek: Supreme Court Strikes Down Most Trump Tariffs
• Material Handling & Logistics: Tariffs Struck Down by Supreme Court
• Oil & Gas Journal: SCOTUS Limits Presidential Tariff Authority, Injecting New Oil and Gas Industry Uncertainty
• Plant Services: Trump's Emergency Tariffs Ruled to be Illegal
• Wastewater Digest: Supreme Court Strikes Down Trump-era Tariffs, Raising Implications for Infrastructure Costs
• T&D World: Supreme Court Hands Trump Tariffs Plan a Setback
• Chemical Processing: Supreme Court Strips Trump's Emergency Tariff Authority
• Vision Systems Design: Supreme Court Ruling Limits Presidential Tariff Powers, Impacting Machine Vision Industry
• Power & Motion: Supreme Court Strikes Down Trump Tariffs