Plaintiffs push to release IEEPA refunds process
This could be one of the earliest concrete moves toward getting money back into importers’ hands following the Supreme Court’s dramatic tariff ruling — and it changes the battleground from appellate delay to active post‑judgment litigation strategy.
Parker Burr
CEO & Founder
02/26/26 7:00 EST
Importers vs US Government
Plaintiffs in the consolidated V.O.S. Selections and related IEEPA tariff cases have asked the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit to issue its mandate immediately so that the U.S. Court of International Trade (CIT) can resume jurisdiction and start deciding remedies after the Supreme Court’s Feb. 20 judgment that the tariffs were unlawful.
In a coordinated legal push filed Feb. 24, the Liberty Justice Center and co‑counsel moved in both the Federal Circuit and the CIT — the former seeking the mandate and the latter seeking permanent injunctive relief and a plan for refunds with interest.
The Federal Circuit has already ordered the U.S. government to respond to that motion, setting up an expedited dispute over when and how lower courts will control the next phase.
Why this matters:
- •The Supreme Court held IEEPA doesn’t authorize tariffs, affirming that authority over tariffs belongs to Congress and not the President — effectively invalidating the prior emergency tariffs imposed under IEEPA
- •Jurisdiction must return to the CIT before concrete refund mechanisms or injunctions can be implemented.
- •The plaintiffs are racing to get the Federal Circuit’s mandate out so that the CIT can draft injunctive orders and begin crafting refund procedures for importers who paid those now‑invalid duties.
Evana
NEXT STEPS
For importers who paid IEEPA duties, this phase means documenting entry and payment records now — including liquidation dates, ACE summaries, proofs of payment, and any protest or litigation filings — because the CIT’s eventual orders (or interim guidance) could trigger formal refund rights.
Evana can do all of this for automatically.
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