Last fall, in Collins v. Yellen, the U.S. Supreme Court invited me to brief and argue in defense of the constitutionality of the Federal Housing Finance Agency. By statute, the president can only fire the head of the FHFA “for cause.” The question in Collins was whether that provision unconstitutionally limits the president’s removal power. […]
Last year, I was asked by the Supreme Court in Collins v. Yellen to argue in defense of the constitutionality of the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s structure. Collins addressed a statute that purports to only allow the president to remove the FHFA’s director “for cause.” A few months ago, the Court concluded that this provision […]
The D.C. Circuit did not decide any cases this week. But that doesn’t mean there is no news. To the contrary: What a wonderful — and sobering — sentiment. The D.C. Circuit is a serious place and when it is at its best, the judges truly have a common calling. I recall (as I’ve recounted […]
Tomorrow is the first day of the D.C. Circuit’s new term. And today is the first day of Version 2.0 of D.C. Circuit Review – Reviewed, your weekly source of information on the nation’s “second most important court.” Between 2015 and 2020, I closely tracked the D.C. Circuit’s cases.* Over time, I learned the patterns; […]
Today, President Biden fired the head of the Social Security Administration, despite the fact that Congress has declared that “[a]n individual serving in the office of Commissioner may be removed from office only pursuant to a finding by the President of neglect of duty or malfeasance in office.” The Office of Legal Counsel justified this […]
As regular readers of this blog may be aware, I recently argued in the U.S. Supreme Court—and lost. In Collins v. Yellen, the Court appointed me to defend the Federal Housing Finance Agency, an independent agency whose director can only be fired “for cause.” Applying Seila Law v. CFPB, the Court concluded 7-2 — including […]
Last year, I wrote a post called “More Chevron Waiver.” My point was that although the D.C. Circuit has held that “an agency’s lawyers cannot forfeit the applicability of Chevron deference unless the underlying agency action fails to manifests its engagement in the kind of interpretive exercise to which review under Chevron generally applies,” the Supreme Court (per Justice Breyer) in County of Maui […]
As Chris notes, Dædalus — the Journal of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences — today published a special issue on the future of the administrative state. The issue’s title is The Administrative State in the Twenty-First Century: Deconstruction and/or Reconstruction. I’m grateful they asked me to participate. My essay is entitled Deconstruction (Not Destruction). Many […]
Yesterday, the Supreme Court decided Van Buren v. United States — an important case about the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act of 1986. I’ll leave it to others to discuss the decision. I will address, however, a claim that I’ve seen in a number of places, viz., that Van Buren is “the first time [Justice] […]
This week, the D.C. Circuit issued an en banc order: If you are interested in what this case is about, here is how the panel decision begins: The concurring opinion by Judges Tatel and Ginsburg, in turn, says: Interesting. Because the subject has been on my mind, however, I want to focus on the appointment […]
A couple of weeks back, I noted the speculation that President Biden would nominate Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the D.C. Circuit. Now, the nomination is official. Congratulations, Judge Jackson! For this post, I decided to do a quick search of Judge Jackson’s involvement with the D.C. Circuit. Using Westlaw,* I found 38 cases, including […]
The big news this week from the D.C. Circuit has nothing to do with administrative law.* But the Court did issue two unanimous opinions about standing that are worth a read. Here is how Judge Rogers begins her opinion in Hawkins v. Haaland (joined by Judges Katsas and Rao): And here is how Judge Walker […]
For the first time in more than two decades, former Chief Judge Merrick Garland is no longer a judge of the D.C. Circuit. Judge Garland, of course, was a formidable judge — smart, talented, witty, dutiful, collegial, and a mentor to his scores of clerks. And to top it off, he is quick to show […]
I wasn’t planning on writing a post today. But wow — what an unusual day in the D.C. Circuit.* Let’s start with United States v. Scurry (also known as “E”). Here is how the per curiam (Judges Millett, Pillard, and Katsas) begins: I’ve never seen that before. It gets more interesting, though. Eric Scurry’s counsel […]
The most important news this week in the world of law is that someone is leaking information about internal Supreme Court deliberations: This is a bad development. Leaks can destroy collegiality — collegiality that takes a great deal effort to build and which facilitates intellectual engagement. Leaks also can lead to self-censorship; if the justices […]