By Arriana McLymore
NEW YORK, Feb 24 (Reuters) – French beauty group L’Oreal, British vacuum manufacturer Dyson and contact lens maker Bausch + Lomb became the latest corporations to sue for refunds of tariffs paid under President Donald Trump’s emergency trade measures, days after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled the duties unlawful, court filings showed.
The cases were filed on Monday in the U.S. Court of International Trade, adding them to a growing list of prominent companies to file suit following Friday’s landmark ruling. Global transportation company FedEx and U.S. skincare and fragrance company Sol de Janeiro also filed complaints this week.
More than 1,400 importers including big-box retailer Costco and tiremaker Goodyear have already sued, court documents show, and trade lawyers expect a wave of additional lawsuits as companies try to recover billions of dollars in duties. The recovery process still has to be worked out by a lower court, though, and resolutions could take months or years.
Up to $175 billion in U.S. tariff collections are subject to potential refunds, Penn Wharton Budget Model economists said, after the Supreme Court on Friday ruled in a 6-3 vote that Trump overstepped his authority by using the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), a sanctions law, to impose tariffs on imported goods.
Those that have sued represent only a fraction of the companies that may be eligible.
L’Oreal’s case was filed by L’Oreal Travel Retail Americas, the division selling beauty products in duty‑free and travel‑related shops.
L’Oreal, Dyson, Bausch + Lomb and Sol de Janeiro said in their filings they served as importer of record on goods subject to IEEPA tariffs. L’Oreal did not say how much it wants refunded.
The companies did not immediately respond to requests for comment. As with other cases, the lawsuits named U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the agency’s commissioner Rodney Scott and the United States of America as defendants. CBP and the White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
(Reporting by Arriana McLymore in New York; Writing by Josephine Mason in London; editing by David Gaffen)
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