Update: CBP’s IEEPA Tariff Refund Portal Launching April 20, 2026
As a follow-up to our earlier alert regarding potential refunds of IEEPA-based tariffs following the Supreme Court’s decision in Learning Resources, Inc. v. Trump, U.S. Customs and Border Protection has announced that its new online refund system—the Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries (“CAPE”) portal, built within the Automated Commercial Environment (“ACE”)—will launch on April 20, 2026. Importers who paid duties under the unlawful IEEPA tariff programs can take several steps now to be ready to submit claims as soon as the system goes live. Notably, the CAPE process is being deployed in phases, and the initial phase is limited to certain unliquidated entries and certain entries that are no more than 80 days past their liquidation date. CBP has published additional guidance on the IEEPA duty refund process at https://www.cbp.gov/trade/programs-administration/trade-remedies/ieepa-duty-refunds, and we encourage all potentially affected importers to review that guidance, begin preparing their entry data, and contact Cline Williams if you have any additional questions.
Potential Refunds of IEEPA-Based Tariffs Following Supreme Court Decison
The United States Supreme Court recently held that tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (“IEEPA”) were not authorized by statute. Accordingly, importers that paid duties under these programs may have the opportunity to recover those payments. The process for obtaining refunds continues to develop. The United States Court of International Trade has already begun addressing remedies for importers and the federal government is working to establish an online claims portal for importers. Recent representations by U.S. Customs and Border Protection indicate a streamlined system for IEEPA tariff refund claims could be ready as early as mid-April 2026. Businesses that acted as importers of record during the relevant period of the tariffs should begin preparing now to preserve and pursue potential refund claims.
On December 1, 2025, the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Cox Communications v. Sony Music Entertainment, a case centered around the obligations of internet providers in addressing illegal actions by their users. Sony has sued Cox, rather than its users, for copyright infringement based on Cox’s failure to terminate the internet access of suspected copyright infringers. Sony won at trial and before the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, but during oral arguments, several SCOTUS Justices expressed reservations about holding Cox liable for the downstream actions of its subscribers.
Cline Williams is pleased to announce the firm has been recognized by Best Lawyers® "Best Law Firms" 2026. The firm received 20 rankings overall for the Lincoln and Omaha Metropolitan areas. 15 of the practice areas achieved first-tier metropolitan rankings and 5 received second-tier rankings.
Best Lawyers® “Best Law Firms” rankings are based on a rigorous evaluation process that includes the collection of client and lawyer evaluations, peer review from leading attorneys, and review of additional information provided by law firms as part of the formal submission process. A firm must have at least one lawyer recognized in the latest edition of The Best Lawyers in America® to be eligible for "Best Law Firms".
Cline Williams partner, Tara Stingley, has been named the winner of the 2025 Omaha Inspire Award for Excellence in Business – Small/Medium, announced during the October 29 luncheon at the CHI Health Center.
On September 19, 2025, President Trump issued a proclamation restricting the entry of anyone seeking to enter or reenter the U.S. in H-1B status without payment of a new $100,000 fee. The proclamation, titled Restriction on Entry of Certain Nonimmigrant Workers is effective date is 12:01 a.m. EDT Sunday, September 21, 2025, and is set to expire after one year.
Cline Williams Wright Johnson & Oldfather is proud to announce that three attorneys were named “Lawyer of Year” in the Best Lawyers in America® 2026 edition.
The U.S. Copyright Office recently released a pre-publication version of Part 3 of its Copyright and Artificial Intelligence Report series. This report focuses on training materials used to train generative artificial intelligence (“AI”), and whether developers need licenses to use third-party copyrighted works. The USCO explained that sometimes developers will need to license third-party copyrighted works, and sometimes will not need to license those works, depending largely on whether the use is considered fair. While recognizing the merits of potential government intervention to spur licensing, the Office concluded that market development of creative licensing solutions on a case-by-case basis is the best current option.
Cline Williams is proud to reveal that 30 of the firm's lawyers are listed in the Best Lawyers in America® 2026. Best Lawyers in America® are chosen through an extensive peer driven evaluation. Lawyers are recognized for their professional excellence in their area of practice. Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch, listed 3 of our attorneys. The listed lawyers, who are early in their careers, are recognized for their outstanding professional excellence in private practice.
Cline Williams is also proud to announce that three firm attorneys were selected for inclusion in the Best Lawyers in America® 2026 as “Lawyer of the Year” in their respective practice. They received this distinction based entirely upon peer ratings. Only a single lawyer in each practice area and designated metropolitan area is honored as a “Lawyer of the Year."
