Tabletop game companies sue Trump to stop tariffs

A group of tabletop game makers and other American small businesses are filed a lawsuit on Thursday against President Donald Trump and his administration to attempt to stop his tariffs. The lawsuit alleges the tariffs are “unlawful and unconstitutional” and details how they are creating challenges for the plaintiffs’ businesses.

The tabletop companies that are among the plaintiffs in the case include Stonemaier Games (which announced its involvement in the lawsuit earlier this week, as reported by Polygon), Spielcraft Games, Rookie Mage Games, XYZ Game Labs, and Tinkerhouse. The 145 percent tariffs imposed on goods imported from China are a significant part of the burden, as spelled out in examples in the lawsuit:

• Stonemaier Games, which has its products printed at a factory in China, has imports that are “ready to ship on which it estimates it will pay millions in tariffs pursuant to the actions challenged herein.”
• Spielcraft Games has paid $4,335.40 in tariffs for “a board game set” that it imported from China this month.
• Rookie Mage Games has paid $3,120.80 in tariffs for “products imported from China” this month and will have to pay tariffs on “all future imports.”
• XYZ Game Labs estimates that it will have to pay “substantial tariffs” on goods manufactured in China that it plans to import later this year and on “all future imports.”
• Tinkerhouse is producing a “tabletop roleplaying game accessory” in China that the company has made a down payment on. The company estimates it will have to pay “substantial tariffs” on when it imports the accessory later this year. It also expects that it has to pay tariffs on “all future imports.”

Other plaintiffs in the case include Princess Awesome, a clothing company, Mischief Toy Store, a toy store based in Saint Paul, MN, and others. The lawsuit was filed on Thursday with the US Court of International Trade.

The lawsuit from the small companies joins a growing list of parties fighting the tariffs in court. On Wednesday, 12 states sued the administration, with New York Attorney General Letitia James calling the tariffs “unlawful” in a statement. The CEO of Learning Resources, a toy company that also filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration over tariffs, told CBS MoneyWatch that “this path is catastrophic.”

However, the future of the tariffs is also murky right now, with The Wall Street Journal reporting yesterday that the Trump administration is thinking about reducing the tariffs on China