A son of Indian immigrants who once served as the top advocate in the US was one of the key people to argue against President Donald Trump's tariffs in court, leading to a Supreme Court judgment that struck down the sweeping tariffs enacted under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA).
Neal Katyal, a former Acting Solicitor General of the United States, argued in the Supreme Court against Trump's use of the IEEPA to impose what he said were "unjust, unconstitutional taxes" on imports from almost every trading partner.
Who Is Neal Katyal?
He was born in Chicago to Indian immigrant parents - an engineer and a doctor. Katyal has graduated from Dartmouth College and Yale Law School. He clerked for US Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer.
Appointed as the Acting Solicitor General in 2010 by President Barack Obama, he represented the federal government before the Supreme Court and the Courts of Appeal throughout the US. Katyal has built his career on high-stakes constitutional battles. He has argued over 50 cases before the apex court. The Chicago native specialises in constitutional and complex appellate litigation.
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His past cases include challenging Trump's 2017 travel ban, defending the constitutionality of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and winning unanimous rulings in key national security and environmental disputes.
Katyal has also served as a Special Prosecutor for the US state of Minnesota in the case of George Floyd's murder. He is currently a partner at Milbank LLP. The former Acting Solicitor General is also the Paul Saunders Professor at Georgetown University Law Center.
Listed as one of the top 200 lawyers in the United States in 2024 and 2025 by Forbes, Katyal is the author of the book Impeach: The Case Against Donald Trump.
Katyal was named Litigator of the Year in 2017 and 2023 by The American Lawyer. He has received the highest civilian honour of the US Justice Department - the Edmund Randolph Award.
What Neal Katyal Said About The Judgment
He framed the ruling as a constitutional milestone. "The US Supreme Court gave us everything we asked for in our legal case. Everything," he explained.
"This case has always been about the presidency, not any one president. It has always been about the 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," Katyal told IANS.
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What's Next For Donald Trump?
The 6-3 ruling sets up a long fight for tariff refunds. While the Supreme Court did not address the matter of refunds, the US Court of International Trade is expected to address the issue over the coming months.
The duties, now deemed illegal, minted around $133.5 billion from January 2025 to mid-December.
While Trump has vowed to impose new duties under alternate rules, including a 10% levy under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974, the judgment may force a rethink among trading partners about the deals they signed with the US. While countries that have finalised trade agreements may maintain, those that are still negotiating may have more leverage now.
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