Delivery company FedEx says it will return any tariff refund it might get to shippers and customers who paid them. The statement came after FedEx filed suit in the US Court of International Trade to request a refund on what it paid for tariffs set by President Trump under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, per the AP. Last week, the Supreme Court ruled that the tariffs are illegal.
More than 1,000 companies have filed suit to recoup costs from the tariffs, including large US corporations like Costco and Revlon. "If refunds are issued to FedEx, we will issue refunds to the shippers and consumers who originally bore those charges," FedEx said in a statement. "When that will happen and the exact process for requesting and issuing refunds will depend in part on future guidance from the government and the court." The Supreme Court ruling did not address implementation of any system by which the companies and individuals who paid those tariffs could be refunded.
Setting up a system for refunds will likely be a lengthy process. The libertarian-leaning Liberty Justice Center, which represented some of the original plaintiffs that were part of the Supreme Court decision, said Tuesday that it, along with co-counsel Neal Katyal, filed coordinated motions in the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit as well as the US Court of International Trade, to help set in motion a process for refunds.