People shop at a Costco store in the Staten Island borough of New York City, U.S., January 16, 2026. Brendan McDermid/File Photo
Costco’s decision to buck President Donald Trump appears to have paid off now that a majority od Supreme Court Justices have destroyed his self-appointed power to impose arbitrary international tariffs at the whim of a social media post
“Back in December, I wrote about how Costco became the first major retailer — and the largest company — to sue the Trump administration over tariffs. At the time, the question practically asked itself: brilliant or insane?” said Inc. reporter Bill Murphy. “Two months later, there is a much clearer answer.”
When SCOTUS deemed Trump’s tariffs to be illegal on Friday it left open the door of what exactly to do about the tens of billions of dollars the Trump administration has been slurping up from U.S. consumers and businesses with its import tax.
“If the refunds materialize as many companies hope, Costco’s decision to jump into court early could look less like a gamble and more like sharp strategic timing,” said Murphy.
Costco was not the only company to sue the Trump administration over its tariffs, but it was the most visible among similar filings by similar tariff challenges EssilorLuxottica, Kawasaki Motors, Revlon, Bumble Bee Foods, Goodyear, and others.
But the Supreme Court’s decision was primitive and singular. It delivered no plans or tactic for Trump to return his ill-gained money to companies, nor for companies to reimburse their consumers the added fees they were forced to collect for tariffed purchases. So, Murphy predicted the administrative process to be “complex.”
Murphy pointed out that the mechanics of tariff refunds likely will depend on “preserving claims while entries are still legally contestable,” which is something early filers have already worked out.
The result, he said, is not a literal “front of the line” reimbursement in the way creditors recoup their fees. However, companies that moved first “may face fewer procedural hurdles as the government unwinds what could be more than $170 billion in collected duties.”
Costco, by being one of the first companies to speak up against the Trump administration in defense of their consumers, could conceivably benefit from direct cash recovery on tariffs that it has already paid, earlier administrative positioning because it recorded and kept tabs on its claims for its attorneys, and “strategic credibility with investors for having acted decisively,” said Murphy.