The lawsuit alleges that the import duties do not genuinely address forced labor as claimed

A coalition of 25 states, mostly led by Democrats, filed a lawsuit yesterday against President Donald Trump’s new round of tariffs.

The states include Arizona, New York and Washington. Announcing the suit, California Attorney General Rob Bonta said, “This is President Trump’s third attempt to illegally impose tariffs that would make life more expensive for American families.”

The Trump administration announced the new tariffs in July after a temporary 10% global tariff expired. The new rates range from 10% to 12.5% on imports from 60 economies, including the European Union, China, India, Japan, and Canada.

The lawsuit argues that the tariffs do not genuinely address forced labor, as the administration claims, and instead seek to bypass a February Supreme Court ruling that struck down earlier levies.

The White House has defended the tariffs, saying they are lawful and necessary to counter foreign trade practices that harm US commerce.

Despite increases in import duties, the US effective tariff rate has fallen to 7.4% in 2026 from 9.4% in 2025, according to Fitch Ratings.