FedEx sues US government for tariff refund

Two days after the Supreme Court ruled that reciprocal tariffs were unlawful, considering that the path approved by President Donald Trump with the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) to circumvent congressional oversight was not appropriate, the delivery services company FedEx has filed a lawsuit to demand a full refund.

“Plaintiffs seek for themselves a full refund from Defendants of all IEEPA duties Plaintiffs have paid to the United States,” the company said in the lawsuit filed in the U.S. Court of International Trade against Customs and Border Protection (CBP), the agency that collects tariffs, as well as the U.S. Government.

FedEx explains that, during the period the reciprocal tariffs were in effect, it was forced to pay a substantial amount of duties on the goods it imported from other countries, and “suffered injury caused by those orders.” Normally, FedEx’s lawyers wrote in the filing, when goods enter into the United States, the importer of record pays an estimated duty, then CBP “fixes the final appraisement of merchandise by confirming the final value, classification, duty rate, and final amount of duty for the imported goods.”

Several studies have confirmed that American businesses and households have borne the brunt of the tariffs since Trump approved them in April of last year. The president invoked the IEEPA, arguing that the country was threatened by the enormous trade deficit and the fentanyl crisis. But six of the nine Supreme Court justices believe that this law, which allowed him to bypass congressional approval, is not the appropriate legal framework for enacting such measures.

FedEx’s lawsuit is the first filed by a major U.S. Company after the Supreme Court’s decision. Other companies had filed their lawsuits prior to the Court’s ruling, which has been a major blow to Trump’s core economic policy. The retail warehouse club giant Costco sued the government in early December of last year seeking a refund of the tariffs.

Several hundred small and medium-sized businesses joined together under the banner of “We Pay the Tariffs” to advocate for a refund and have them declared illegal. An Illinois toy manufacturer and a New York alcohol importer, representing the platform, along with complaints from some Democratic officials, took the case to the Supreme Court, which issued a decision last Friday.

FedEx had already warned in quarterly earnings reports about the impact of the tariffs on its finances. In its September report, it acknowledged to investors that the blow to its earnings for the fiscal year could reach $1 billion by 2026. “From a customer perspective, it has been a very stressful period,” said Brie Carere, FedEx’s chief customer officer, in September, NBC reported.

Businesses aren’t the only ones demanding refunds on import duties. Last Friday, after learning of the court’s decision, Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker sent a letter and an invoice to the White House, with the following message: “On behalf of the people of Illinois, I demand a refund of $1,700 for every family in Illinois. There are 5,105,448 households in my state, bringing the total damages you owe to $8,679,261,600.”

“This letter and the attached invoice stand as an official notice that compensation is owed to the people of Illinois, and if you do not comply, we will pursue further action,“ wrote Pritzker, who is one of the president’s most vocal critics.

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