[U: Decision Overturned] Federal Court Blocks Trump’s Tariffs, Putting Some Changes on Hold

UPDATE 05/30/2025: Shortly after a federal court blocked President Trump’s tariffs, calling them illegal, an appeals court intervened and temporarily agreed to preserve many of those sweeping tariffs. As things stand, there’s no court ban on the tariffs.

Original article published on May 29, 2025, follows…

By the time your favorite gadget lands in your hands, it has gone through a lot of steps. We’re not just talking about the engineering hurdles, but the economic challenges that shape its price. If there’s one factor that can significantly affect how much we pay for the next phone or laptop, it’s tariffs. They can either drive prices up or bring them down. Right now, some of those changes seem to be on hold, but the future is still up in the air.

President Trump’s tariffs called “illegal” by Fed Court

On May 28, a US federal court stopped President Trump’s plan to put a 10% tariff on goods from many countries, according to CBS News, saying the tariffs are illegal because the president went beyond his authority. The court said the administration used a law called the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) from 1977, but used it in a way that the law doesn’t allow.

Credits: White House/Edited

The Trump administration said the growing US trade deficit is a national emergency, which makes these tariffs okay. But the judges disagreed. They said IEEPA is meant for real emergencies, not for trade problems or wide tariffs on many countries. So, the court blocked the 10% tariffs and also stopped new tariffs planned for China, Mexico, and Canada. This decision limits the president’s power to put tariffs in place without Congress’s approval. It also shows the ongoing argument about how much power the president should have over trade and the economy.

The tariffs have already made businesses rethink their plans. For example, Samsung started making more Galaxy S25 phones earlier this month, expecting no extra fees or taxes. But President Trump recently said there might be a 25% tariff on phones not made in the US, including on iPhones, Galaxy phones, as well as Pixel and others. Samsung said it probably won’t pay these costs itself, which means prices for American customers could go up by as much as 40%.

The Trump administration plans to appeal the court’s decision. So, the future of these tariffs and how they might affect prices for phones and other products is still unclear.