Washington DC - 25 states, nearly all led by Democrats, sued the Trump administration on Monday over wide-ranging tariffs, arguing that President Donald Trump had exceeded his authority in imposing the new levies on dozens of countries.

"There is no rational fit between the purported problem of forced labor in international supply chains and the blanket global tariffs the USTR imposed," the coalition of states argued in a court filing, referring to the US Trade Representative's office.

The challenge is related to Trump's latest salvo of tariffs of between 10 and 12.5% imposed against 60 trading partners – forming the bulk of US imports – last month.

The tariffs were imposed after probes by the USTR's office over allegations of "forced labor," conducted under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974.

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Since taking office for his second term, Trump has upended global trade by imposing wide-ranging tariffs – at sometimes eye-watering levels – against friends and foes alike.

Trump has argued that US trading partners have been taking advantage of the world's largest economy, and has sought to use tariffs as leverage to strike new trade deals.

His first round of tariffs, imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, was struck down by the Supreme Court in February.

He replaced those with a 10% global levy, which expired in July.

The new Section 301 tariffs replaced that levy, taking effect as the 10% tariff expired on July 24.

Of the 25 states, 23 have Democratic governors while two – Nevada and Vermont – are led by Republicans.

In their court filing, the Democratic-run states argued that the Section 301 probes were "a pretextual and unlawful effort to exert unfettered tariff power."

The document lays out a timeline of Trump administration officials' statements, arguing that the investigations were rushed and prejudged when they were initiated.

"The Tariff Action is arbitrary, capricious, and contrary to law," the complaint says.

"The Plaintiff States oppose forced labor in all its forms and support protections for workers around the globe. But the Administration cannot use forced labor as a pretext to continue its illegal tariff scheme."