The midterms and mail-in voting are approaching, and as they do, the federal courts are already deciding cases about postal operations. One such case began in the summer of 2020, a time of pandemic and postal policy changes. The policy changes “included a reduction in the number of high-speed mail sorting machines, a decrease in […]

“There’s something about black holes that draws in scientists and the rest of us terrestrial dwellers,” lawyers included. Last week, however, the D.C. Circuit concluded that the military is not a constitutional “black hole of futile claims.” The case was Talbott v. United States. (See here and here for news coverage about the case, and here for a prior D.C. Circuit order […]

One of President Donald Trump’s first acts of his second term was to proclaim that there was an “invasion” of immigrants at the border between Mexico and the U.S. His proclamation aimed to block people from entering the U.S. and applying for asylum. Last week, the D.C. Circuit held in Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education […]

The D.C. Circuit published three opinions during the week of March 9, none of which broke new ground.  In Clean Fuels Alliance America v. EPA, Judge Garcia wrote for a unanimous panel in holding that a challenge to EPA’s Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) Program was moot. Its holding was “narrow” and rested on circuit precedent: Petitioners […]

Last week at the D.C. Circuit was one of unanimous published opinions in four administrative law cases, which highlighted the principle that scientific determinations are due significant deference, the requirement that agencies reasonably explain the regulatory lines they draw, and the importance of addressing reliance interests when changing policy. Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp. v. Kennedy was […]

Last week, the D.C. Circuit handed the Trump Administration two big victories based upon Dalton v. Specter, which two panels took to stand for a broad principle limiting judicial review. It decided eight other cases, and many of those were consequential administrative law decisions too. The Specter in Global Health Council v. Trump and NTEU […]

Last week, perhaps in anticipation of Independence Day, the D.C. Circuit exercised its “independent judgment” in two administrative law cases that dodged interesting questions about Loper Bright. When Has Congress Delegated Interpretive Discretion to an Agency? Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo answered one question – Chevron, nevermore? – and raised another – when has Congress […]

The D.C. Circuit published two opinions last week. Page v. Comey addressed an already-reported on lawsuit in which Carter Page, an advisor to Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign, alleged that the FBI unlawfully surveilled him and damaged his reputation by leaking information to the press. In 2022, the district court dismissed his complaint for failure to state a claim. […]

This post covers the two published opinions of the D.C. Circuit for the week of April 7. Ateba v. Leavitt addressed a journalist’s First Amendment challenge to the White House Hard Pass Policy. Under this Policy, “[t]he White House issues hard passes,” which afford “preferred access to the White House Press Area,” to “reporters who are accredited […]

Marin Audubon Society v. FAA is back in the news. Last week, the D.C. Circuit returned to the case for the second time since the panel’s November 2024 judgment. For our prior coverage of the November judgment, which threatened to “upend()” fifty years of law implementing the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), see here. In […]

The D.C. Circuit published two opinions in the week of January 13th. Both involved FERC, and the more interesting of the two raised questions about standing doctrine. Industrial Energy Consumers of America v. FERC was the standing case. The petitioners, various organizations representing energy consumers, petitioned for review of FERC orders granting stage one approval […]

That’s the sound of a major opinion from the D.C. Circuit. Last week, in TikTok Inc. v. Garland, the Court of Appeals held that the Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act’s provisions about the TikTok platform do not violate the U.S. Constitution. The First Amendment issue got the most treatment. Judge Ginsburg, who wrote the majority […]

The D.C. Circuit published one opinion last week, which did not deal with administrative law. It did, however, deal with a high-profile issue: criminal prosecutions stemming from January 6. United States v. Griffin posed the question, what does it mean for a person to “‘knowingly enter[]’ the restricted safety zone [around the Vice President]” within […]

The D.C. Circuit published an interesting standing opinion last week: Citizens for Constitutional Integrity v. Census Bureau. In an opinion by Judge Wilkins, joined by Chief Judge Srinivasan and Judge Childs, the court aimed to clarify when to relax the Article III standing test for a procedural rights claim. “There is no established test in […]

The D.C. Circuit published eight opinions this week, including two on the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act (here and here), one on standing to appeal a denial of a motion for class certification, another on the constitutionality of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (spoiler alert: the facial challenges failed), and one on what I trust is […]