Trump’s Tariffs Ruled Illegal—Now What?

Many around the world were shocked when the Supreme Court announced last week that Trump’s tariffs were illegal. Honestly, we aren’t surprised, considering Trump had to justify that they were an emergency to enact them—but what happens next?

Unfortunately, Trump’s tariffs don’t mean consumers get their money back—but businesses might. What’s more, Trump had already enacted new tariffs. Read on to learn what you can expect for tariffs in the future.

Why Were Trumps Tariffs Illegal?

Despite common belief, US Presidents don’t get to do whatever they want—the power balance system (though broken) was designed for a reason, to keep presidents in check. As a matter of fact, the only reason Trump was able to enact the tariffs in the first place was because of emergency powers granted to him under a specific constitutional power (International Emergency Economic Powers Act)granted to presidents in national emergencies.

And guess what? On Friday, the Supreme Court ruled that the first few months in 2025 after Trump took the Presidency were not an emergency. Even if they were, tariffs do not qualify. As such, Trump will have to roll back his tariffs whether he likes it or not.

How Will People Get Their Money Back?

The overturning of Trump’s tariffs is too little, too late, in our opinion. While there are rumors and news articles pushing businesses to sue Trump for the money spent on tariffs back, the reality isn’t so black and white.

The truth is, while businesses may have forked out the initial cash for these tariffs, they did not pay them. Read that again. Trump’s tariffs were paid by and large by small businesses and consumers, who saw the prices of their favorite items skyrocket if they originated outside of the United States. Although we would love for consumers to be refunded for the tariffs they paid, we know this is not reality—and if businesses manage to get their money back, corporate greed will further be fueled at the cost of the already unstable American dollar.

Did Trump Already Enact New Tariffs?

Unfortunately, yes, Trump has already enacted new tariffs, which will last for a legal period of 150 days. After this period is over, what the next step is for the Trump Administration is unclear. (For those interested, the new tariffs were imposed under Section 22 of the 1974 Trade Act, and unlike his former tariffs, they are applied to all countries at a set 10%).

Trump was already seen bragging that this ruling “only made his tariffs stronger.” From what we can tell, this is propaganda, however we will see how the next 150 days go.

Are the New Tariffs Also Illegal?

It is too soon to rule whether Trump’s newly imposed tariffs are against the law, and we suspect another court case is coming soon. Keep in mind, though, that the new tariffs are only for a short time, and Trump will have to try to continue them using a different method when 150 days are up.

When Will This Game With Tariffs End?

We’d hope that the tariff game would end on Friday with the Supreme Court’s ruling, however it appears that will not be the case and the game with tariffs will, unfortunately, continue.

Are Tariffs Good?

No matter what Trump tries to spew, the reality is, tariffs aren’t good. Their cost almost always falls on the tax-paying consumer rather than the countries or businesses behind the goods. What’s more is that many countries around the world simply stopped trading with the US.

In the modern global economy, the US isn’t the only provider of most goods anymore. Europe has grain fields, and South American countries have corn fields. Fruit of all varieties can be found in most Southeast Asian countries, and Australia has grown to directly rival the US meat market.

Even though the tariffs are now declared illegal (and Trump has already enacted new ones), many countries have already moved away from trading with the US, and most see no reason to go back to trading with America, not even if the tariffs are repealed. This means Trump has single-handedly lowered the US’s trading power—forever. All to snag a bit more cash (or try to).

What Do Tariffs Have to Do With Crypto?

If you haven’t noticed, the US dollar is quickly losing value. This is due to the economic and social tensions between the US and the rest of the world (and Trump’s trade war). And, per the usual, gold purchases are on the rise as people seek to store their wealth in something that isn’t tied to a possibly fascist government. Historically, this run to gold has also led to a run toward crypto.

So far, in 2026, the run for gold has not had a positive impact on the cryptocurrency world. Many like to fear-monger and say that this is the end of crypto, but we find the current downturn to be a necessary correction.

When Trump was elected, cryptocurrency hit a massive bull market, with the price starting a steep climb in November 2024. This climb continued as Trump overturned anti-crypto policies and made big promises for the future of crypto.

Sadly, Trump hasn’t delivered on those promises, and good things can’t last forever. We think the current decline of crypto is a needed correction—people who weren’t actually interested in crypto but rather didn’t want to miss out. So, when it dipped just a bit more than normal, they bailed, not realizing this is what crypto does.

We expect crypto to climb again soon—as long as all the people who don’t really understand crypto are out of the market. Because there are businesses all around the world currently adopting, and looking into blockchain technology, and this isn’t slowing down. As always, this means you have to be patient, don’t panic, and remember that crypto has always been the long game. If you don’t think you can wait a year or two for things to get better—then you’re one of the ones the rest of the world is waiting to leave.