The Indian-American litigator Neal Katyal, who argued before the US Supreme Court against Donald Trump’s sweeping global tariffs, praised his team as the “best legal team in the world” after the landmark ruling struck down the measures.His reaction came after the US Supreme Court handed Trump a stinging defeat by declaring his tariffs “illegal” and questioning the president’s authority to impose such sweeping trade duties without Congress.
In a post on X, the former acting US solicitor general, who served under the Barack Obama administration, Neal Katyal wrote, “I have the best legal team in the world. Brilliant lawyers & the kindest of souls. Lucky.”Earlier, Katyal welcomed the ruling as a major blow to Trump and described it as a “decisive victory” for constitutional governance and the separation of powers.Katyal serves as the Paul and Patricia Saunders Professor of National Security Law at Georgetown University Law Center, said the ruling was a sweeping endorsement of the arguments made in the case, which challenged what the plaintiffs described as unconstitutional taxation by the executive branch.In his earlier statement on X, he wrote, “Today, the US Supreme Court stood up for the rule of law and Americans everywhere. Its message was simple: Presidents are powerful, but our Constitution is more powerful still. In America, only Congress can impose taxes on the American people. The US Supreme Court gave us everything we asked for in our legal case. Everything.”“I’m grateful for the leadership of the Liberty Justice Center, and in particular for the brilliant advocacy by its chair, Sara Albrecht, who led the fight when others wouldn’t and was dauntless in its defense of our constitutional order. I’m also grateful to the five small business owners who stood up against these unjust, unconstitutional taxes. By taking a stand, they have delivered crucial relief to tens of thousands of businesses and millions of consumers across the country,” the statement read further.“Finally, I lack the words to properly thank my brilliant Milbank team, especially Colleen Roh Sinzdak and Sami Ilagan, who worked with me day and night for many months to craft the winning argument. This case has always been about the presidency, not any one president. It has always been about separation of powers, and not the politics of the moment. I’m gratified to see our Supreme Court, which has been the bedrock of our government for 250 years, protect our most fundamental values,” the statement concluded.Katyal, a partner at global law firm Milbank LLP, has argued dozens of cases before the US Supreme Court and is widely regarded as one of the country’s leading constitutional lawyers. His work, both in academia and litigation, has focused on executive power, national security law, and constitutional checks and balances.The case, supported by the Liberty Justice Center and a group of small business owners, focused on whether the president could impose taxes without approval from Congress. By siding with the challengers, the Court reaffirmed that the power to levy taxes rests solely with Congress under Article I of the Constitution.In a 6–3 ruling on Friday, the apex court reviewed tariffs imposed under an emergency powers law, including the sweeping “reciprocal” duties Trump levied on nearly all countries. The justices held that his use of emergency authority to impose import tariffs without approval from Congress was unlawful.
