The US Court of International Trade has ruled against former President Donald Trump’s recently imposed 10 percent global tariff. The court stated that such a universal tariff was not justified under a trade law from the 1970s. The ruling came on Thursday in favor of small businesses that had filed the case, challenging the tariff that took effect on February 24.

According to the plaintiffs, the new tariff attempted to bypass a previous Supreme Court decision that had struck down Trump’s 2025 tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. In his February order, Trump invoked Section 122 of the 1974 Trade Act, which allows temporary tariffs of up to 150 days to address severe trade imbalances or prevent a sharp dollar devaluation.

The court found that the trade deficits cited in Trump’s order did not justify the use of this law, concluding that the measure was not an appropriate response under the statute.