The companies are challenging two separate groups of tariffs, including list 3 and 4A. List 3 encapsulates 25% tariffs on $200 billion worth of imported goods while 4A includes 7.5% tariffs on $120 billion of products from China.
Trump administration’s tariffs were responses to China’s intellectual property theft
The lawsuit puts the Trump administration in a tough position since the White House made the trade war with China a primary goal. Trump argued that the tariffs were put in place due to Chinese intellectual property theft.
In March 2018, the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) reported that its “Section 310 investigation found China’s acts, policies, and practices related to technology transfer, intellectual property, and innovation are unreasonable and discriminatory and burden or restrict U.S. commerce.”
While the lawsuit doesn’t challenge the notion that China steals American intellectual property to get ahead, it becomes immediately clear that the tariffs have increased the cost of doing business for multiple companies.
