Wisconsin Man Says Tariffs' 'Abstract' Nature Helps Establish Standing to Challenge the Trump Tariffs
Gary Barnes, the pro se litigant challenging President Donald Trump's tariffs, responded on Aug. 11 to the government's opposition to his motion for reconsideration of the Court of International Trade's decision to dismiss the case for lack of standing. Barnes argued that his amendment to his original complaint helps establish that he has suffered a direct injury from the tariffs (Barnes v. United States, CIT # 25-00043).
Sign up for a free preview to unlock the rest of this article
Timely, relevant coverage of court proceedings and agency rulings involving tariffs, classification, valuation, origin and antidumping and countervailing duties. Each day, Trade Law Daily subscribers receive a daily headline email, in-depth PDF edition and access to all relevant documents via our trade law source document library and website.
In May, the trade court dismissed Barnes' case for lack of standing, since Barnes failed to claim that any harm he would suffer by Trump's tariffs is "particularized" or "actual or imminent" (see 2505230017). Barnes filed his pro se suit in February, arguing that any attempt by the president to levy import duties amounts to an improper delegation of power under the U.S. Constitution (see 2502060026).
Barnes then moved the court to reverse its decision, amending his complaint in the process. The government opposed the request, arguing that the motion is actually an unwarranted motion to reconsider the decision (see 2507230055). The U.S. added that even if the motion is construed as an amended complaint, the new complaint fails to allege a "particularized, actual or imminent injury and should be dismissed."
In response, Barnes laid out his theory of standing. The Wisconsin man said the first group to pay duties imposed by tariffs are direct importers. The second group to pay them are merchants, and the third group are the consumers, because importers and businesses pass the costs of doing business on to consumers. Barnes said he's a member of the consumers group, granting him standing to sue.
Barnes said his amended complaint contains new evidence in the form of a Truth Social post from Trump "insisting Amazon and Walmart not indicate the duty tax on imported products." The Wisconsin man said this evidence shows that Trump "does not want the consumer’s group to know how much the duty tax he imposed on imported products, by Executive Order, is affecting the cost of the items they are purchasing."
Tariffs have an "injurious impact on the purchasing power" of consumers, yet they don't appear on any sales receipts. Thus, tariffs are "abstract or conjectural on purpose," Barnes said.