The United States Supreme Court has put an end, in part, to the use of nationwide injunctions from federal courts limiting the executive branch. On Friday, the high court—considering a combination of three cases—granted the Trump administration’s request to partially stay the injunctions, stating that the orders “are broader than necessary to provide complete relief to each plaintiff with standing to sue.”
Writing for the six-judge majority, Justice Amy Coney Barrett argued, “[F]ederal courts do not exercise general oversight of the Executive Branch; they resolve cases and controversies consistent with the authority Congress has given them. When a court concludes that the Executive Branch has acted unlawfully, the answer is not for the court to exceed its power, too.”
This ruling marks a significant victory for President Donald J. Trump, as lower federal courts will now only be allowed to grant injunctive relief in their respective jurisdictions and cannot issue blanket nationwide blocks against executive branch directives. Notably, the ruling also signals the potential likelihood that the Trump White House will succeed on the merits of the three cases used to win the stay order. Critically, one of the cases involves President Trump’s Executive Order ending birthright citizenship.
While the decision largely curtails nationwide injunctions, there remains—as noted by Justice Samuel Alito—a modicum of ‘wiggle room’ for lower courts to issue injunctions beyond their jurisdiction.
