Executive Branch

DOJ uses this maneuver to keep top federal prosecutors on the job, even after judges reject them

The U.S. Department of Justice is defending the validity of its decision to appoint Alina Habba as the acting U.S. attorney in New Jersey by first designating her as a “special attorney,” one of several efforts around the country to keep top prosecutor picks in place without U.S. Senate confirmation.

Jul 30, 2025 2:39 PM CDT

Ghislaine Maxwell urges Supreme Court to hear appeal, says DOJ wants to distract

Attorneys for Ghislaine Maxwell, the imprisoned associate of deceased financier Jeffrey Epstein, on Monday urged the U.S. Supreme Court to hear an appeal of her sex-trafficking conviction and accused the Trump administration of making inaccurate, distracting claims in court papers.

Jul 28, 2025 4:25 PM CDT

DOJ’s Civil Rights Division has lost hundreds of employees in ‘mass exodus’

The U.S. Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division has lost 368 employees since President Donald Trump took office in January, according to figures provided to a Democratic senator.

Jul 28, 2025 11:43 AM CDT

Emergency docket orders should ‘inform’ courts in similar cases, SCOTUS says

The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday allowed President Donald Trump to remove, for now, three Democratic members of the Consumer Product Safety Commission, pointing to its prior emergency docket order allowing the firing of board members of two other independent agencies.

Jul 25, 2025 9:26 AM CDT

9th Circuit upholds nationwide injunction in challenge to Trump’s restrictions on birthright citizenship

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals at San Francisco has upheld a nationwide preliminary injunction that blocks President Donald Trump’s curtailment of birthright citizenship, finding that a U.S. Supreme Court decision restricting such injunctions does not foreclose universal relief in a lawsuit by four states.

Jul 24, 2025 12:03 PM CDT

‘Small and mighty in numbers,’ solo and small firm lawyers help challenge Trump administration agenda

Updated: Some BigLaw firms are reluctant to oppose administration policies after President Donald Trump pursued disfavored law firms with punitive executive orders. But others outside BigLaw are willing to litigate, the New York Times reports.

Jul 23, 2025 11:50 AM CDT

US will appeal decision finding punitive executive order against Jenner & Block violates First Amendment

The federal government on Monday filed notice that it will appeal a federal judge’s decision blocking a punitive executive order against Jenner & Block that threatened its employees’ security clearances and put its clients’ government contracts at risk.

Jul 22, 2025 9:42 AM CDT

Interim US attorney gets new title after judicial panel rejection for permanent position

The clock was ticking for John Sarcone III, the interim U.S. attorney for the Northern District of New York. Picked by U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi, Sarcone was slated to lead the Northern District of New York on a more permanent basis. While awaiting U.S. Senate confirmation, Sarcone needed the seal of approval by a panel of federal judges before his interim term of 120 days expired.

Jul 21, 2025 1:56 PM CDT

Education funding freeze violates ‘multiple statutory and regulatory commands,’ says suit by Democratic states

A lawsuit filed Monday by Democratic officials in 24 states and the District of Columbia seeks the release of billions of dollars in federal education funding that has been frozen by the U.S. Department of Education and the Office of Management and Budget. The decision to withhold $6.8 billion for…

Jul 15, 2025 12:34 PM CDT

Supreme Court decision allowing mass firings at Education Department ‘is indefensible,’ dissenters say

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday allowed mass firings to proceed at the U.S. Education Department, prompting a vigorous dissent from the court’s three liberal justices. The Supreme Court stayed a May 22 preliminary injunction that ordered the department to restore nearly 1,400 fired employees to their jobs. Acting in…

Jul 15, 2025 9:43 AM CDT

Lone dissenter Jackson slams SCOTUS for ‘casually’ overriding judge who blocked US job-cuts plan

President Donald Trump’s executive order requiring federal agencies to submit plans for “large-scale” workforce reductions can take effect, for now, as a result of a decision Tuesday by the U.S. Supreme Court.

Jul 9, 2025 10:37 AM CDT

Lawyer for ABA, foreign-aid recipients tells DC Circuit US must spend appropriated ‘pots of money’

Congress in 2024 “appropriated very specific pots of money for foreign assistance purposes” and required the executive branch to spend the full amount, a lawyer representing the ABA and other groups challenging funding cutoffs told the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit on Monday.

Jul 8, 2025 1:35 PM CDT

AG Bondi cited this justification for Trump’s power to ignore TikTok ban

The U.S. Department of Justice is “irrevocably relinquishing” claims against technology companies that provided services to TikTok in violation of the law banning the Chinese-owned social media app, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi said in letters released to the New York Times under the Freedom of Information Act.

Jul 7, 2025 9:49 AM CDT

Chemerinsky: Supreme Court’s term was all about taking sides on the ideological divide

The court’s October 2024 term, which ended June 27, presented a number of cases that posed politically controversial issues concerning the aspects of the culture wars and challenges to the actions of President Donald Trump.

Jul 2, 2025 9:00 AM CDT

US will appeal Perkins Coie win in fight over punitive executive order

The federal government will appeal a judge’s decision permanently blocking an executive order targeting Perkins Coie.

Jul 1, 2025 11:41 AM CDT