Last week the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Separation of Power Restoration Act, with even one Democrat voting in favor.* If enacted, the legislation would attempt to get rid of Chevron and Auer deference by amending the Administrative Procedure Act to instruct courts to “decide de novo all relevant questions of law, including the interpretation […]
This has been a banner year for the ABA Section of Administrative Law and Regulatory Practice–one that has been full of accomplishments. The Section has set a record for the most program events in its history, including some terrific new programs such as “The 60th Anniversary of the Hoover Commission: Lessons for Regulatory Reform”, the “Great Debate” […]
The conflict between the rule of lenity and administrative deference doctrines has drawn significant judicial attention recently (see prior coverage here ). I’ve posted on SSRN an essay that discusses some potential implications for the tax laws, and here’s the abstract: A controversy has emerged over how to interpret statutes under which the government can […]
To be sure, I don’t really know what life was like in the 1970s; I wasn’t even born. Even so, I’m sure it was dreadful. After all, as I read my history books, all I see are ugly clothes, disco, impeachment, killer rabbits, long lines for gas, plus something about a “malaise.” Poor souls: The only […]
Last week the Internet buzzed with news of Airbnb’s lawsuit against San Francisco. Dissatisfied with a new ordinance updating and enforcing 2014 regulations of short-term rentals, Airbnb filed suit against the city, arguing that the new ordinance violated both federal law and the federal constitution. The regulations reflect San Francisco’s conclusion, grounded in more than […]
I want to thank the editors for bringing me on to the Notice and Comment Blog. I am an Administrative Judge at the Federal Aviation Administration with a focus on government contract law and alternative dispute resolution. I am also a member of the American Law Institute, and generally possess an academic interest in the […]
Some people have asked me why I’ve been so hard on the administration for flouting appropriations law over the ACA’s cost-sharing reductions. Hasn’t the administration done the right thing to try to prevent health reform from collapsing? Aren’t the Republicans being hopelessly intransigent? Shouldn’t I just shut up? I hear all that. I’m a committed […]
Warning! This post may only be of interest to me. But there is a mystery this week in the D.C. Circuit: What happened in Coburn v. Murphy? In Coburn, the D.C. Circuit included an intriguing footnote: “Judge Henderson was drawn to replace Chief Judge Garland, who originally heard argument in this case but did not […]
One of the most unusual cases you will ever read is McClure v. Carter —from the District of Idaho, in 1981. The case was a constitutional challenge to a judicial appointment, brought by a sitting U.S. Senator. That’s unusual by itself. The case is more unusual still, however, because the suit was brought under a […]
Jonathan Adler (Case Western), Roger Meiners (Texas A&M), Andrew Morriss (UT-Arlington) and Bruce Yandle (Clemson) have co-authored Baptists, Bootleggers & Electronic Cigarettes, which is forthcoming in the Yale Journal on Regulation and has already been previewed online here and elsewhere. As the title suggests, this article applies the “Baptists & Bootleggers” theory of regulation to […]
Last Friday, the D.C. Circuit rejected West Virginia’s challenge to the so-called “like it, keep it” fix, which told the states that they could temporarily decline to enforce the ACA’s new insurance rules against their insurers. (Background here.) I’m sympathetic to West Virginia’s underlying legal claim. It was unlawful, in my judgment, for the Obama […]
June has come to an end, the Justices have dispersed, and once more, in the words of a young John Roberts, “the Constitution is safe for the summer.” Every year, the Supreme Court rushes to finish up its work before the Fourth of July. And then the Justices are off to Austria, Malta, Arkansas, Italy, […]
On June 16, 2016, Justice Clarence Thomas wrote for a unanimous Supreme Court that so-called “implied certification” theories supporting False Claims Act suits were permissible under the statute but ultimately sided with the government contractor because “if the Government pays a particular claim in full despite its actual knowledge that certain requirements were violated, that […]
Last week, the Department of Justice asked the Court of Federal Claims to dismiss a massive class-action lawsuit in which co-ops have asked for money owed to them under the risk corridor program. To my knowledge, the government’s motion is its first substantive filing in any of the risk corridor cases. The litigation was precipitated […]
My co-blogger Andy Grewal asked in a post on Tuesday: “Why doesn’t the IRS comply with the Congressional Review Act?” My first thought on reading Andy’s post was: “Yeah, why doesn’t it?” My second thought was: “Maybe it does.” The Congressional Review Act, passed in 1996, allows the House and Senate to block certain federal […]