On Monday, FedEx initiated legal action against the Trump administration, demanding the “complete reimbursement” of all duties levied by the government under the now-invalidated International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA).
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The Supreme Court determined on Friday that President Donald Trump overstepped his executive authority by employing this act to impose extensive tariffs across nearly all of the U.S.’s trading partners.
“Consequently, Plaintiffs are seeking, on their own behalf, a full reimbursement from Defendants for every IEEPA duty that Plaintiffs have remitted to the United States,” FedEx’s legal counsel stated in the complaint submitted to the Customs and Border Protection Agency within the U.S. Court of International Trade.
FedEx asserts that throughout the duration these tariffs were enforced under the IEEPA legislation, the company imported commodities originating from nations subject to those specific duties. They contend that by “remitting IEEPA duties to the United States, [they have] therefore sustained harm resulting from those directives.”
According to its online presence, this worldwide shipping enterprise manages the movement of 17 million parcels daily across hundreds of nations.
“Typically, when merchandise arrives in (or is imported into) the United States, the entity responsible for the import pays an estimated duty,” FedEx’s attorneys noted in their submission. Subsequently, Customs and Border Protection “finalizes the valuation of the goods by confirming the ultimate worth, classification, applicable duty rate, and the total duty amount due for the imported items.”
In recent financial reports detailing quarterly earnings, FedEx executives had cautioned that the tariffs would negatively impact the company’s bottom line. In September, prior to the IEEPA tariffs being revoked, FedEx projected the financial burden could reach $1 billion throughout the 2026 fiscal year.
Brie Carere, FedEx’s Chief Customer Officer, remarked in September, “From the viewpoint of our clientele, this has been a highly anxious period.” She added that the situation had been “especially difficult for smaller exporting businesses.”
The White House has not offered an immediate response to requests for comment.
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FedEx’s lawsuit appears to mark the inaugural claim for a refund by a large corporation following the Supreme Court’s decision last Friday.
However, several legal challenges concerning this matter had already been lodged in the specialized court handling international trade matters.
In December, Costco filed a lawsuit against the administration, also seeking a complete refund for tariffs paid under the IEEPA. Costco previously disclosed that approximately one-third of its sales within the U.S. are derived from goods brought in from abroad.
Gina Raimondo, who served as Commerce Secretary under the previous Biden administration, was appointed to Costco’s board of directors merely days after that legal action commenced.
Aside from FedEx and Costco, other entities such as beauty conglomerate Revlon, eyewear producer EssilorLuxottica, motorcycle producer Kawasaki, tinned food vendor Bumble Bee, Japanese automotive component supplier Yokohama Tire, and numerous other smaller enterprises have submitted comparable lawsuits in recent months.
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