Who Is Neal Katyal? Indian-Origin Lawyer Behind Landmark US Supreme Court Ruling Against Trump’s Tariffs
The US Supreme Court may have handed Donald Trump one of the most stinging setbacks of his second term by striking down his signature tariffs and at the centre of that legal victory stands an Indian-origin attorney who has long been regarded as one of America’s sharpest constitutional minds.
Neal Katyal, a former Acting Solicitor General of the United States and current partner at Milbank LLP, represented a coalition of small businesses before the nation’s highest court and walked away with what he himself described as a “complete and total victory.”
Following the 6-3 ruling, Katyal, 55, said the judgment carried a clear and important message. “Today, the US Supreme Court stood up for the rule of law and Americans everywhere. In America, only Congress can impose taxes on the American people,” he wrote on X, formerly Twitter. He also noted a striking detail in an interview two of the three Supreme Court justices appointed by President Trump had voted against him in the case.
From Chicago to the Supreme Court
Born on March 12, 1970, in Chicago to Indian immigrant parents his mother Pratibha, a doctor, and his father Surender, an engineer Katyal went on to build one of the most distinguished legal careers in the United States.
He completed his undergraduate studies at Dartmouth College before earning his law degree from Yale Law School. His deep grasp of constitutional and national security law drew the attention of Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer, under whom Katyal served as a clerk.
Also Read: Supreme Court Delivers Blow To Trump’s Tariffs: India’s Exports Set For Relief
His defining professional moment came in 2010, when President Barack Obama appointed him Acting Solicitor General. During his tenure, Katyal argued more than 50 cases before the Supreme Court a record for the highest number of cases argued by a minority attorney, surpassing the benchmark set by Thurgood Marshall, who served in the same capacity in 1965 under President Lyndon B. Johnson. Marshall later made history as the first African-American Supreme Court justice in 1967.
A Career Defined by Landmark Cases
Katyal’s courtroom record spans some of the most consequential legal battles in recent American history. He has defended the constitutionality of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and challenged Trump’s 2017 travel ban a case the Supreme Court ultimately upheld. His work earned him the Edmund Randolph Award in 2011, the US Justice Department’s highest civilian honour.
He also featured in Forbes’ list of the top 200 lawyers in the United States for two consecutive years, in 2024 and 2025.
Beyond litigation, Katyal has remained active in academia, serving as a law professor at Georgetown University Law Centre while also holding visiting professorships at both Harvard and Yale. In 2019, he authored the book Impeach: The Case Against Donald Trump.
India Takes Note
The Supreme Court ruling has drawn considerable attention in India as well. Political analyst Raju Parulekar took to X to highlight Katyal’s role: “So it took a very talented lawyer, of Indian origin, Neal Katyal, to drag the Trump administration to the highest court of the land and obtain a reversal for the unlawfully imposed tariffs.”
Following the court’s decision, President Trump indicated he had further moves available on the tariffs front, signalling that the broader battle is far from over. For Katyal, however, the verdict adds yet another landmark chapter to an already formidable legal legacy.