(Originally published by The New York Times on June 4, 2025.)

Are President Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs on, or are they off? And, more important, will legal challenges to these levies put the brakes on the seizure by presidents of both parties of ever-increasing unilateral power?

Two federal courts recently ruled that Mr. Trump lacks authority to impose them, but a specialized federal court with authority over tariff cases, the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, paused the enforcement of those decisions, ordering lawyers to submit legal briefs before a hearing on Monday. One or both cases are likely to land at the Supreme Court in short order.

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