Costco has sued the Trump administration, seeking a “full refund” on the tariffs it has paid on imported goods following Trump’s executive order to implement a series of “reciprocal” tariffs, should the Supreme Court strike down the tariffs. The wholesaler is asking the Court of International Trade to consider all tariffs collected under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act unlawful. Costco files federal lawsuit challenging Trump’s emergency tariff orders on imported goods https://t.co/15TLtAazcm pic.twitter.com/5fUn3ZYu7w — New York Post (@nypost) December 2, 2025 NBC News has more: “Because IEEPA does not clearly authorize the President to set tariffs … the Challenged Tariff Orders cannot stand and the defendants are not authorized to implement and collect them,” Costco’s lawyer writes in the lawsuit. The Supreme Court is reviewing the legality of Trump’s sweeping tariff agenda. In oral arguments in early November, justices appeared skeptical about the government’s case. Both conservative and liberal justices asked tough questions to Solicitor General D. John Sauer, though some of the conservatives seemed more sympathetic to his arguments. Trump became the first president ever to use the IEEPA law to impose import duties. Lower courts earlier ruled against the administration’s use of the law but kept the tariffs in place while the case was argued. Costco does not say in the filing how much the duties have cost the company; importers have paid nearly $90 billion under the IEEPA law, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection data through late September. “The economic consequences of the failure to uphold President Trump’s lawful tariffs are enormous and this suit highlights that fact,” White House spokesperson Kush Desai said, according to The New York Times. “The White House looks forward to the Supreme Court’s speedy and proper resolution of this matter,” the statement added. ABC News provided coverage: Costco has filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration for a "full refund" on import duties the company says it paid this year under global tariffs imposed by President Trump. Read more: https://t.co/oZISEmVTu5 pic.twitter.com/Vr0fuPXxvO — ABC News Live (@ABCNewsLive) December 2, 2025 The New York Times provided further info: The challenge by Costco, the largest warehouse club chain in the United States, echoes arguments that a number of small businesses have already made before the Supreme Court in lawsuits against Mr. Trump’s tariffs. Costco argues that the Trump administration’s implementation of them has created chaos. The tariffs have been “threatened, modified, suspended, and reimposed, with the markets gyrating in response,” the lawsuit says. The lawsuit does not disclose how much Costco has paid in tariffs. Importers like V.O.S. Selections, a wine and spirits company, and Learning Resources, Inc., an educational toymaker, have already secured major rulings against the administration in lower federal courts. The Supreme Court heard oral arguments last month and is expected to rule on the legality of the tariffs in the near future. Mr. Trump argues that tariffs have helped bring the government “hundreds of billions of dollars,” and the administration has warned of a severe economic impact should businesses be allowed to seek refunds if the government loses the Supreme Court case. If the administration loses the Supreme Court case, there are other ways to tax imports. Multiple trade authorities exist that would allow the president to impose tariffs that are not subject to the IEEPA, and some of those provisions are already in use.