TRENTON, N.J. — New Jersey Attorney General Jennifer Davenport has joined a coalition of 25 states in filing a lawsuit challenging the Trump administration’s latest round of tariffs, arguing the measures are unlawful and will increase costs for American consumers and businesses.
The lawsuit challenges the administration’s decision to impose higher tariffs on imports from more than 80 countries, which the coalition said account for 99.4% of all U.S. imports.
“When we see repeated attempts to impose tariff after tariff—even as courts declare them illegal—it’s ordinary people who ultimately bear the cost,” said Attorney General Davenport. “New Jersey families are paying more for household items, our businesses face uncertainty and find it difficult to plan, and the economic burden keeps falling on the people who can least afford it. We owe it to the families we serve to prioritize keeping prices low, not raising them through illegal tariffs.”
According to the attorney general’s office, the lawsuit contends the latest tariffs exceed the administration’s legal authority and violate the Administrative Procedure Act.
The lawsuit follows previous legal challenges to tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act and Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974. The coalition said those tariff actions were previously found to be unlawful by federal courts.
According to the attorney general’s office, the latest tariffs were imposed under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 after the U.S. Trade Representative investigated the European Union and 59 other countries over efforts to combat forced labor in global trade. The lawsuit alleges the administration used the investigation to justify broad tariffs similar to those previously struck down by the courts.
The complaint was filed in the U.S. Court of International Trade in the case State of Oregon, et al. v. Trump, et al.
The attorney general’s office also cited a recent analysis by researchers at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York that concluded nearly 90% of the costs of tariffs imposed in 2025 were paid by American consumers and businesses.
Joining New Jersey in the lawsuit are the attorneys general of Oregon, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Rhode Island, Virginia, Vermont, Washington and Wisconsin, as well as the governors of Kentucky and Pennsylvania.
