Karan Ramchandani, managing director of capital markets at Post Oak Group, explains how US-Canada tariffs and USMCA uncertainty are disrupting the auto, steel and wood sectors, freezing long-term capital and driving up costs for consumers and small businesses.
A family-owned U.S. food importer sued the Trump administration Tuesday over its 50% tariffs on some Canadian products, arguing the duties are illegal and that the company estimates they could cost it about $40 million a year on Canadian cheese imports alone.
Gellert Global Group, a New Jersey-based food importer, filed a complaint with the U.S. Court of International Trade with a representative from the Liberty Justice Center, the latest legal challenge to the Trump administration’s tariff policies.
The lawsuit comes after President Donald Trump invoked Section 338 of the Tariff Act of 1930 over the summer to impose 50% tariffs on certain Canadian imports. The administration expanded the list of covered products in September to include cheeses imported by Gellert.
The Liberty Justice Center is asking the court to declare the fares illegal, block their collection and order repayment with interest.
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President Donald Trump’s administration is facing a new lawsuit from a U.S. food importer challenging 50% tariffs imposed on some Canadian products. (Al Drago/The Washington Post/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)
The group argues that the Trump administration is using the Tariff Act of 1930 beyond its intended purpose and imposing tariffs on products unrelated to the Canadian policies it sought to challenge.
“This case is not about the president. It is about the presidency. No president should have the power to take away pending legislation and use it to impose sweeping tariffs or import bans without the limitations Congress requires,” Sara Albrecht, president and CEO of the Liberty Justice Center, said in a statement.
According to the complaint, Gellert previously imported Canadian cheese without paying duties under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), but now faces 50 percent tariffs.
On Sept. 28, the company imported a shipment of goat’s milk cheese worth about $120,000 and paid more than $60,000 in customs duties, according to the complaint.
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President Donald Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney have exchanged criticism following the breakdown of trade negotiations between the United States and Canada. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images/Getty Images)
The Trump administration said it imposed the tariffs in response to what officials described as Canada’s discriminatory trade practices affecting U.S. businesses.
The suit argues that the tariffs do not compensate for the alleged discrimination because they apply to products unrelated to the challenged Canadian policies.
Thomas Gellert, co-CEO of Gellert Global Group, said the tariffs disrupt business relationships developed over generations.
“These tariffs disrupt those relationships overnight and create costs and uncertainty that ripple through the entire supply chain,” Gellert said.
This lawsuit is the Liberty Justice Center’s fourth challenge to the Administration’s pricing policies under various statutory authorities, following cases involving IEEPA and Sections 122 and 301 of the Federal Trade Act.
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A Canadian flag flies on the shore of Lake Ontario in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, August 27, 2026. (Cole Burston/AFP via Getty Images/Getty Images)
In February, the Supreme Court ruled that the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) did not authorize the president to impose the tariffs challenged in this case, but the administration continued to impose levies under other trade laws.
A federal trade court also ruled against alternative tariffs imposed under Section 122, a decision the administration has appealed, while another challenge involving Section 301 remains pending.
The Liberty Justice Center has previously challenged the administration’s IEEPA rates and is also challenging rates imposed under Sections 122 and 301.
The latest legal challenge comes amid an ongoing trade dispute between Washington and Ottawa.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney suspended trade talks in August, accusing the United States of making unfair last-minute changes to a potential deal.
The office of the United States Trade Representative disputed this version, saying that Canada had refused to finalize the previously agreed terms.
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A New Jersey-based food importer is suing the Trump administration over tariffs on Canadian imports that it says could cost it $40 million a year. (Shawn Thew/EPA/Bloomberg/Getty Images)
Canada has since imposed retaliatory tariffs on certain American products.
FOX Business has contacted the White House for comment.
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