The Supreme Court hears oral argument today in Trump v. Slaughter, (No. 25-332), to decide whether Humphrey’s Executor v. U.S., 295 U.S. 602 (1935), should be overruled. On Friday, the D. C. Circuit weighed in to the ongoing debate over Humphrey’s Executor just in time to add to the weekend reading of the justices’ law clerks. President Trump fired […]
The D.C. Circuit released no opinions last week. That, and Thanksgiving, might otherwise provide an occasion for a light-hearted post about D.C. Circuit cases involving Turkey pardons and cranberry confiscations (both exist!). But Thanksgiving was a more somber day in Washington, D.C., this year, as it saw the death of one of the two Guardsmen […]
The D.C. Circuit decided one merits case involving the Essential Air Service program, stayed an interim final rule governing commercial driver’s licenses, and denied en banc rehearing of the mandamus order in the Alien Enemies Act case. Essential Air Service First, in Southern Airways Express, LLC v. U.S. Department of Transportation, the court unanimously denied a […]
The D.C. Circuit issued no opinions last week. There was one late October order to note, however—declining a stay pending appeal sought by the FTC. The case is Media Matters for America v. FTC, No. 25-5302, in which Media Matters sued to quash a civil investigative demand issued by the FTC, arguing that it was […]
In a week when the D. C. Circuit issued no opinions, we find ourselves with some time on our hands. Given the dire warnings that our addiction to screens is creating a post-literate society with its attendant personal and social pathologies, this may be a good time to read a book. My recommendation is Justice […]
Halloween is around the corner, and the time is ripe for a “ghoul” to “sit up in its grave and shuffl[e] abroad.” Is Chevron—lately interred by the Supreme Court—that ghoul? One can certainly sense its presence in one of the D.C. Circuit’s opinions from last week: CBOE Global Markets v. SEC. The decision (by Judge […]
Although the D.C. Circuit didn’t issue any opinions last week, it denied a motion for an emergency stay in Abramowitz v. Lake—another case testing the scope of the President’s power to remove inferior officers. The case concerns the Director of the Voice of America, which is the U.S. government’s international broadcaster. The Director reports to […]
Last week, the D.C. Circuit released an opinion deferring to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission in light of Seven County Infrastructure Coalition v. Eagle County; an opinion deferring to the FBI in a Freedom of Information Act case; an opinion vacating a FERC order that departed from the cost-causation principle; an opinion on standing; and an […]
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’s motions docket stayed busy with another removal case, this time related to the President’s attempt to remove “for cause” Lisa Cook from her position as a member of the Federal Reserve’s Board of Governors. The district court preliminarily enjoined Cook’s removal after finding that she is likely to succeed on […]
The Tucker Act has been in the news a lot lately, as a centerpiece of litigation over various Trump Administration grant terminations. The Tucker Act requires parties with contract claims against the government to bring those claims in the Court of Federal Claims. The Court of Federal Claims can award damages, but unlike a federal […]
Last week, the D.C. Circuit adopted an interesting remedy in a notice-and-comment case; dealt with an analogy between administrative proceedings and judicial disciplinary proceedings; and addressed the standards for scientific studies in an arbitrary-and-capricious case. It also issued an order staying an injunction against the removal of two members of the National Credit Union Administration. […]
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 […]
The D.C. Circuit issued seven opinions last week, but most of them were not administrative law cases. They addressed international arbitration (disclosure: I represented amici in support of appellees in that case); constitutional claims related to reincarceration following a mistaken release; fraud claims against federal employees; the False Claims Act; and whistleblower awards for reports […]
The D.C. Circuit prides itself on making its decisions public in a timely fashion. An internal rule helps make that happen. A judge who has failed to circulate to the panel more than two of his assigned opinions by August 15 will not be allowed to hear arguments until he has. At first glance, one […]