Sara Albrecht challenges presidential use of Section 338 for sweeping tariffs
Sara AlbrechtChairman and CEO of Liberty Justice Center
Albrecht argues that presidents cannot use a dormant statute to bypass Congress's limits.
“No president should have the power to pull a dormant statute off the shelf and use it to impose sweeping tariffs or import bans without the limits Congress required”
Official statement
Where this statement fits
Trump's Section 338 Canada tariffs face Gellert Global Group's legal challenge
Gellert Global Group challenges Trump's 50% tariffs on covered Canadian goods under Section 338. Trump's proclamations describe the duties as a response to Canadian discrimination. The importer contests the statutory authority, the discrimination findings and the procedures used.
Source and context
Official statement
About this source
Liberty Justice Center represents Gellert Global Group in the tariff challenge. The release includes named comments from Sara Albrecht, Jeffrey Schwab and Thomas Gellert. It is dated October 20, 2026; no publication time is given.
Before the quotation
In Liberty Justice Center's announcement of the Gellert lawsuit, Albrecht first says the case is not about the president but about the presidency.
After the quotation
The release then says the challenge centers on the difference between foreign discrimination and ordinary trade disagreements.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
Relative to imposing the Section 338 tariffs, Albrecht argues that the president is using a dormant statute without the limits Congress required.
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More from this case
Read the full casePeter Harrell finds key arguments against the Section 338 tariffs persuasive
“I have written about Section 338 elsewhere and I find these arguments persuasive: Canada's acts that are the purported basis for the Section 338 tariffs are not "discrimination" within the meaning of the statute, and the tariffs do not "offset" the burden of the discrimination. At the very least, these arguments would mean a significant narrowing of the tariffs.”Read statement
Thomas Gellert says the Section 338 tariffs disrupt Gellert Global Group's business relationships
“These tariffs disrupt those relationships overnight and create costs and uncertainty that ripple through the entire supply chain”Read statement
Jeffrey Schwab says Section 338 cannot bypass modern trade-law safeguards
“The administration cannot skip those protections by reaching for a 1930 statute that no president had ever used to impose a tariff”Read statement
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- Sara Albrecht challenges presidential use of Section 338 for sweeping tariffs
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The Dispute Index. "Sara Albrecht challenges presidential use of Section 338 for sweeping tariffs". First published: 2026-10-21. Last updated: 2026-10-21. https://disputeindex.com/events/6367-albrecht-argues-that-presidents-cannot-use-a-dormant