tariffs

Subscribe to tariffs via RSS

While there have been dramatic developments in recent days related to the Trump administration’s tariff-policies – including the U.S. Supreme Court striking down the administration’s IEEPA tariffs and the Trump administration announcement of new across-the-board Section 122 tariffs – the uncertainty companies have faced related to the tariffs continues, and indeed may even have been exacerbated. A new securities suit filed earlier this week against Lakeland Industries, a company whose operations and financial results were impaired by “tariff headwinds,” illustrates how the continuing tariff uncertainty may translate into corporate and securities litigation in the weeks and months ahead. A copy of the February 23, 2026, Lakeland Industries complaint can be found here.Continue Reading Protective Clothing Company Hit with Tariff-Related Securities Suit

Sarah Abrams

Following the Supreme Court’s recent decision striking down President Trump’s IEEPA tariffs, many companies will now have to consider whether and how they might seek a refund. Indeed, the first of what undoubtedy will be many refund actions has already been filed. In the following guest post, Sarah Abrams examines the refund-related questions corporate executives now face, and considers the D&O risks involved. My thanks to Sarah for allowing me to publish her article as a guest post on this site. Here is Sarah’s article.Continue Reading Guest Post: Tariff Whiplash, Refund Strategy, and D&O Risk

Last Friday, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its much-anticipated ruling in the case challenging the tariffs President Trump imposed in reliance on the International Economic Emergency Powers Act (IEEPA). By a 6-3 majority, the Court ruled in Learning Resources v. Trump that the IEEPA does not authorize the President to impose tariffs. However, even though the Court has now ruled, questions and uncertainty remain. As discussed below, the continuing questions have important implications for companies’ tariff-related D&O risk. The Court’s February 20, 2026 opinion can be found here.Continue Reading What Does the Supreme Court’s Tariffs Decision Mean?

Sarah Abrams

The Trump administration has already demonstrated that it intends to actively pursue tariff enforcement, as discussed in prior posts on this site (most recently here). One of the enforcement tools the administration is using is the False Claims Act. In the following post, Sarah Abrams, Head of Claims Baleen Specialty, a division of Bowhead Specialty, takes a look at the ways the administration is using the False Claims Act as an enforcement tool, in the context of two recent enforcement actions. My thanks to Sarah for allowing me to publish her article as a guest post on this site. Here is Sarah’s article.Continue Reading Guest Post: False Claims Act Tariff Enforcement

The directors’ and officers’ liability environment is always changing, but 2025 was a particularly eventful year, with important consequences for the D&O insurance marketplace. The past year’s many developments also have significant implications for what may lie ahead in 2026 – and possibly for years to come.  I have set out below the Top Ten D&O Stories of 2025, with a focus on future implications. Please note that on Thursday, January 15, 2026 at 11:00 am EST, my colleagues Marissa Streckfus, Chris Bertola, and I will be conducting a free, hour-long webinar in which we will discuss The Top Ten D&O Stories of 2025. Registration for the webinar can be found here. Please join us for the webinar.Continue Reading The Top Ten D&O Stories of 2025

The imposition of tariffs is a key component of the current Trump administration’s trade policies. A corollary of the tariff policies is that the administration is also giving high priority to enforcement of the tariffs. In the latest illustration of the administration’s tariff enforcement approach, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey has brought criminal tariff evasion charges against an Indonesian jewelry firm, the company’s founder, and two company employees, based on allegations that the company engaged in a multi-year scheme to evade payment tariffs due on over $1 billion of jewelry and gold the company imported to the U.S. A copy of the November 17, 2025, criminal complaint can be found here. The U.S. Attorney’s Office’s November 17, 2025 press release about the complaint can be found here.Continue Reading U.S. Brings Criminal Tariff Evasion Enforcement Action

The Trump Administration’s tariff policies have unquestionably had an impact on the global economy, as well as on the operations and financial performance of at least some individual companies. However, the overall impact has turned out to be less than economists and other observers feared at the time of President Trump’s “liberation day” announcement earlier this year. As discussed below, a number of factors have contributed to the tariffs’ muted impact. However, there are reasons to be concerned that the full effect of the tariffs is yet to kick in so far but may be felt in 2026, with potential consquences for D&O insurance underwriters. Continue Reading Big AI Investments Have Muted the Tariff Impact. But Will it Continue?

Last week, the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral argument in the legal case in which the claimants are challenging the constitutionality of President Trump’s tariffs. While we await the Court’s decision in the case, the tariffs remain in place, with consequences both for the global economy and for individual businesses. In the latest example of the ways in which these consequences can translate into tariff-related securities litigation, a plaintiff shareholder has sued used car retailer CarMax, alleging that the company tried to portray the quarterly sales surge that preceded the tariffs’ impact as being due to longer-term company advantages rather than tariff-motivated consumer behavior. A copy of the new CarMax complaint can be found here.Continue Reading CarMax Hit with Tariff-Related Securities Suit

For those who, like me, watch bankruptcy filing developments for signs about the current and possible future state of the economy, recent data may be worrisome. Just Monday, the Wall Street Journal cited two recent auto parts companies’ bankruptcy filings as evidence of potential trouble in the U.S. credit markets, saying the developments and raising concerns that “something more profound is ailing American borrowers.” Consistent with these concerns, a recent report from Cornerstone Research shows that large company bankruptcy filings are indeed trending upward, with the largest increases in the most recent period. Signs are that these trends will continue going forward, as well.Continue Reading Worrying Signs in Bankruptcy Statistics?

In my recent roundup of the top current stories in the world of D&O, I noted the increasing importance of geopolitical issues as a source of D&O claims risk. Among the factors supporting this trend is the rising relevance of cross-border enforcement initiatives, which in many instances had led to D&O claims. In the latest sign of the importance of cross-border enforcement issues, the SEC has announced the formation of a cross-border task force to “identify and combat cross-border fraud harming U.S. investors.” The SEC’s September 5, 2025, press release about the task force can be found here.  A September 10, 2025, post on TheCorporateCounsel.net blog about the new task force’s formation can be found here.Continue Reading SEC Forms Task Force to Combat Cross-Border Fraud