The Trump DOJ faces its first big tariff refund court deadline on Friday

The Trump administration’s Justice Department is approaching its first major legal deadline in the wake of a US Supreme Court ruling that tariffs issued under President Donald Trump’s International Emergency Economic Powers Act are illegal.

The DOJ is expected by Friday to weigh in on the first legal battles over refunds, with plaintiffs asking for expedited payment of tariff refunds by the Court of International Trade (CIT), which normally handles tariff cases.

Trade attorneys told CNBC that 2,000 cases have been filed by companies suing for duty refunds at the CIT. In December, the CIT stayed the cases until the Supreme Court announced its decision.

After the Supreme Court’s ruling, VOS, one of the plaintiffs, filed a motion in connection with its case, which is pending a Supreme Court ruling at the Federal Court of Appeal, to move through the court as soon as possible for the payment of restitution. A federal district court sent a motion to the Justice Department asking the DOJ to respond on or before February 27 to allow the case to return to the CIT for its ruling. As of Thursday afternoon, there was no filing from the DOJ. It did not respond to CNBC’s request for comment.

The Supreme Court has given the government’s court system 32 days to decide on the next course of action after its verdict.

While the case involves only one group of small businesses, it has legal implications for many cases, the plaintiffs said in their filing: “This court’s prompt action in this case will facilitate prompt payment of restitution in this case to template challenges to IEEPA tariff challenges filed and filed and filed and filed. In those other actions as well.”

Trade attorneys and customs experts told CNBC that roughly 300,000 shippers have paid the duties, and some estimates are as high as $175 billion in potential refunds. More companies have filed lawsuits since the Supreme Court’s decision, including FedEx’s last week.

The DOJ’s response to the court’s request may begin to reveal how the Trump administration plans to navigate the restitution process. President Trump said at a press conference last Friday that it could take years to litigate the issue of tax refunds. Democrats on Capitol Hill have been pushing for a plan from the administration to roll back the tariffs since last Friday, citing the fact that they have months to prepare for an adverse ruling. Treasury Secretary Scott Besant said in an interview on Fox News last Friday that “it can take years to file a lawsuit and get a payment. If there is a payment, it looks like the ultimate corporate welfare.”

In their motion, the plaintiffs want the government to “issue the necessary administrative orders to promptly effectuate the invalidation of the IEEPA tariffs — including any administrative orders requiring the plaintiffs to promptly obtain refunds, which the government is obligated to provide.”

The motion states that the plaintiffs do not expect the government to oppose the court, adding that “the administration’s recent public statements indicate that injunctive relief from this court is necessary to ensure that the government promptly honors its commitments to pay.”

Trade experts said the court’s decision did not carry particular weight in the tariff process — which only Justice Brett Kavanagh said in his dissenting opinion could be a “mess” — due to refunds to companies.

“It is clear that importers of record who paid illegal duties are entitled to the amount they paid,” said Prateek A., lead attorney on the Learning Resources Supreme Court case and head of the Supreme Court practice at Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld. Shah said. “There is no doubt that people who have paid IEEPA tariffs should get refunds. The only question is the process of making the refunds.”