On February 19, 2026, Lieff Cabraser and co-counsel filed a class action lawsuit in the United States Court of International Trade requesting refunds of tariffs unlawfully imposed and collected by the United States under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (“IEEPA”). The case is called Freestyle World, Inc. v. United States.

On February 20, 2026, the United States Supreme Court ruled in a different lawsuit that the IEEPA tariffs were illegal.

On October 8, 2026, the Court granted Freestyle World’s motion requesting that the Court certify a class of all importers of record who paid illegal IEEPA tariffs between February 1, 2025 and February 19, 2026 and who have not filed an individual lawsuit.

Freestyle World asked the Court to issue an order requiring U.S. Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”) to liquidate or reliquidate entries on which IEEPA tariffs were paid.

• “Liquidation” is the final determination of the duties and importer owes as a result of importing merchandise.
• “Reliquidation” is the process of correcting a liquidation, which can result in a refund of improperly collected duties.

We will ask the Court to take steps to refund all illegal IEEPA tariffs paid by class members, including clear and understandable notice to all class members who are eligible for refunds.

The Court has decided that this case can go forward on behalf of everyone affected in the same way. In this case, the Court has defined the class as “All importers of record who paid duties imposed by the Challenged Tariff Orders between February 1, 2025, and February 19, 2026, excluding any entity that has separately filed an action seeking to recover IEEPA duties payments.” Importers of record who meet this definition are called “class members.”

If you are a class member and want to remain part of the class, you do not need to do anything. The class certification order and all future orders from the Court will apply to you.

If you do not want to remain part of the class, you may file your own individual lawsuit.

The certification order means that class members now have counsel to advocate for an expedient and full refund process. Importers of record have access to U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s CAPE system, which is the current mechanism for processing refunds. The CAPE process does not yet cover all modes of paying duties – for example, postal entries – but the Court has repeated that all importers will receive their refunds. Class counsel will work through the process to address and include other refunds, and will report to class members the next steps in the process. Please continue to review the CIT IEEPA website and class counsel’s website for further updates.

• (1) You or your company paid IEEPA tariffs on goods imported into the United States between February 1, 2025 and February 19, 2026;
• (2) You or your company is named as the Importer of Record on those customs entries. This may be true even if a customs broker or freight forwarder prepared and filed the paperwork for you; and
• (3) You or your company have not filed its own lawsuit seeking these refunds.

If you are not sure who was named as the Importer of Record, or who filed your entries, your customs broker, freight forwarder, or the company that shipped your goods can tell you. Your customs paperwork should also show it.

No. The Court certified the class under Court of International Trade Rule 23(b)(2), which does not provide for exclusion. However, importers may file their own cases if they choose. Those importers will remain within the class and be subject to orders of the Court that impact the class as a whole.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection has established an administrative refund process called the Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries (“CAPE”) program. For more detailed information on that process, including whether and how you may be able to claim a refund, please visit CBP’s website: https://www.cbp.gov/trade/programs-administration/trade-remedies/ieepa-duty-refunds.

The Importer of Record or the licensed customs broker that originally filed the entries with CBP, uploads a list of entry numbers to CBP’s computer system through the ACE Portal. CBP removes the IEEPA duties from those entries and liquidates or reliquidates the entry. CBP should then pay refunds, with interest, to a U.S. bank account on file with CBP. It is important to understand that in any liquidation or reliquidation, CBP determines the full amount of duties, taxes, and fees the importer owes. If CBP determines that other considerations increase the amount owed, it will apply the IEEPA refund to cover the additional amount. An importer can, in appropriate circumstances and subject to strict deadlines, challenge the amount of the refund.

For many class members, CAPE currently covers entries that have not yet liquidated and entries that liquidated within the last 80 days. If you have not yet reviewed your entries, we encourage you to do so now.

Yes. Per CBP, as of October 2, 2026, approximately $136.6 billion in both potential and certified refunds were accepted for processing in CAPE. Of that amount, refunds of approximately $126 billion were completed using CAPE, and sent to the U.S. Department of Treasury for disbursement.

Currently, not all illegal IEEPA refunds are eligible to be processed through the CAPE program. CBP has not made the following categories of entries eligible for a refund through CAPE for class members:

1. entries liquidated more than 80 days ago;
2. entries covered by an open protest;
3. entries not filed in ACE (for example, postal imports); and
4. certain other categories of entries.

CBP has said it will add categories in later phases, so this list may change. That does not mean those tariffs are gone.

On October 6, 2026, CAPE began covering entries that liquidated more than 80 days ago for importers of record that filed an individual lawsuit, but not for class members.  Now that a class has been certified in the Freestyle World lawsuit, we will ask for a court order requiring refunds for all illegal IEEPA tariffs that have not yet been refunded, including tariffs on entries that CAPE cannot currently process.

Please keep all records showing that you paid IEEPA tariffs. Those records may be important to participate in the CAPE process and in any other process the Court may allow to obtain IEEPA tariffs refunds.

CBP has said it will add categories in later phases, so this list may change. That does not mean those tariffs are gone.

Now that a class has been certified in the Freestyle World lawsuit, we will ask for a court order requiring refunds for all illegal IEEPA tariffs that have not yet been refunded, including tariffs on entries that CAPE cannot currently process.

In a class action, the court appoints lawyers to work on the case and represent the interests of all the class members.  These lawyers are called “Class Counsel.”  For purposes of this lawsuit, the Court has appointed the following lawyers as Class Counsel.

Your lawyers:

Lawrence M. Friedman
Barnes, Richardson & Colburn, LLP

Elizabeth J. Cabraser
Nicholas Diamand
Daniel M. Hutchinson
Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein, LLP

Telephone:  (800) 642-8330
Email:  TariffsClassAction@lchb.com

These are the lawyers who are bringing the case on your behalf. You will not be charged for their services, although their fees may be paid with the Court’s approval from any settlement or judgment that is obtained for the class.

If you want to be represented by your own lawyer, you may hire one at your own expense.

If you are or represent an importer of record that paid illegal IEEPA tariffs, please use the form below to speak with a lawyer from Class Counsel about this lawsuit and your potential recovery.

A caution about fraud. CBP has warned that scammers are contacting importers by email, text, and social media to obtain company and bank information about IEEPA refunds. CBP does not charge any fee to process a refund. Class Counsel will never ask for your bank account number, your ACE Portal login, or a payment to pursue a refund.

We can only assist businesses that paid IEEPA tariffs. Did your business pay IEEPA tariffs?

Copies of court filings by Class Counsel, key court orders, and declarations by CBP are below.

• Class Action Complaint
• Motion to Lift Stay and for Class Certification
• Declaration of Russell Wallace ISO Motion for Class Certification
• Declaration of Nicholas Diamand ISO Motion for Class Certification
• Order Lifting Stay and Setting Settlement Conference
• Opposition to Motion to Lift Stay and for Class Certification
• Order re Briefing and Hearing for Class Certification
• March 6, 2026 Declaration of Brandon Lord
• August 4, 2026 Declaration of Brandon Lord Responding to July 17, 2026 Court Order
• Reply ISO Motion for Class Certification
• Declaration of Shannon Wheatman on Class Notice Practices
• August 25, 2026 Declaration of Brandon Lord Responding to August 5, 2026 Court Order
• September 15, 2026 Declaration of Brandon Lord Responding to August 27, 2026 Court Order
• October 6, 2026 Declaration of Brandon Lord Responding to September 17, 2026 Court Order
• October 8, 2026 Opinion & Order Certifying the Class
• October 26, 2026 Declaration of Brandon Lord Responding to October 8, 2026 Court Order

To get a copy of all case documents, you access the Court’s Public Access to Court Electronic Records (PACER) portal online, visit the Clerk’s office of the Court, or request them from Class Counsel.

Yes. Please check this webpage regularly to learn what the Court decides. If you are an importer of record that paid illegal IEEPA tariffs between February 1, 2025 and February 19, 2026, you may also request email updates by completing the form above.

If you have additional question or need assistance, call (800) 642-8330 or email TariffsClassAction@lchb.com. Please be patient. There are approximately 330,000 importers of record. We will answer all inquiries in the order we receive them.

Last updated October 27, 2026.