Latest news with #AmyBermanJackson
New York Times
a day ago
- Business
- New York Times
Appeals Court Paves Way for Mass Layoffs at C.F.P.B.
A federal appeals court paved the way for the Trump administration to move ahead with plans to decimate the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, ruling 2 to 1 to throw out a lower court's effort to block mass layoffs. In the 49-page ruling, Judge Gregory G. Katsas of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, a Trump appointee, wrote that Judge Amy Berman Jackson of the Federal District Court in Washington had no jurisdiction to block the Trump administration's efforts to lay off about 1,500 of the C.F.P.B.'s 1,700 workers. Civil servants' employment-related complaints are subject under law to a specialized review process, he wrote, and the plaintiffs' other grievances did not pertain to reviewable, final agency actions or unconstitutional acts. 'Accordingly, we vacate the preliminary injunctions,' Judge Katsas wrote in the majority decision, in which he was joined by Judge Neomi Rao, also a Trump appointee. But the effect of the ruling is not expected for at least seven days, leaving the plaintiffs time to appeal. This spring, the Trump administration attempted to reduce the C.F.P.B.'s work force by nearly 90 percent, a move blocked by Judge Jackson. Over the next several weeks, a frenetic back-and-forth ensued, as the three-judge panel from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit overturned Judge Jackson's initial injunction before allowing a revised version to stand until they could fully address the matter. The C.F.P.B., an Obama-era creation that was the brainchild of Senator Elizabeth Warren, Democrat of Massachusetts, has long been a target of President Trump, and was a focal point for his so-called Department of Government Efficiency, a federal cost-cutting operation led by the tech billionaire Elon Musk. Less than three weeks into Mr. Trump's second term, Russell T. Vought, the director of the Office of Management and Budget who was also named acting director of the C.F.P.B., ordered the agency's employees to cease 'all supervision and examination activity,' effectively freezing their operations. The layoff notices came almost immediately after. Congress created the C.F.P.B. in 2010, as part of a wider financial regulatory overhaul, and the plaintiffs argued that the Trump administration's efforts to diminish it were an unlawful power grab from the legislative branch. The appeals court's ruling disputed their argument that the administration's moves to drastically reduce the agency's staff were a final decision about the fate of the agency. In a dissent published Friday, Judge Cornelia T.L. Pillard, an Obama appointee, rejected her colleagues' view, stating that only Congress could dissolve the agency. 'It is emphatically not within the discretion of the president or his appointees to decide that the country would benefit most if there were no bureau at all,' she wrote in a 60-page dissent.
Epoch Times
a day ago
- Business
- Epoch Times
Federal Appeals Court Sides With Trump Admin in Mass Firing of CFPB Staff
The Trump administration scored a major legal win on Friday as a federal appeals court lifted an order that had kept the government from cutting staff at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), clearing the way for sweeping changes at the financial watchdog. In a 2–1 decision, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit on Aug. 15 vacated the preliminary injunction issued by U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson, who in April found the administration was 'engaged in an unlawful effort to dismantle and eliminate' the CFPB. The majority held that the employment claims brought by the plaintiffs—the National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) that represents CFPB staff—must be handled through federal labor channels and that the remaining allegations did not involve final agency action reviewable under the Administrative Procedure Act.
CNN
2 days ago
- Business
- CNN
CFPB cuts can resume, divided appeals court rules
Federal agencies Donald Trump FacebookTweetLink A divided federal appeals court is allowing President Donald Trump to downsize the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau at this time, siding with the administration on its plans to reshape government agencies and its employees. Groups that represent CFPB employees or use the agency to protect consumers from predatory banking sued months ago, after Trump replaced the agency's director shortly after he took office and the administration paused the CFPB's efforts. The administration then canceled the agency's lease for its headquarters building, and terminated or planned to cut more than 80% of the agency's workforce. A trial level judge in Washington, Amy Berman Jackson, quickly stepped in to block the near-shuttering of the agency. But on Friday, the DC Circuit decided employees of the agency would need to challenge their loss of employment in other venues outside of the federal court district court first. The appeals court, however, reiterated that some functions of the CFPB, like responding to consumer complaints, can't be shut down. But the ruling Friday took at face value the Trump administration's argument it hasn't decided to shut down the CFPB in full, and cited the lack of existence of a memo specifying that the CFPB would be closed. 'We agree with the government that there was no reviewable decision to shut down the CFPB,' Judge Greg Katsas wrote in the opinion. Katsas and Judge Neomi Rao, who were both appointed to the bench in Trump's first presidential term, split from Judge Nina Pillard, an Obama appointee, in making the decision. Pillard disagreed with her colleagues on the bench over lessening the role of the courts in the case. 'The notion that courts are powerless to prevent the President from abolishing the agencies of the federal government that he was elected to lead cannot be reconciled with either the constitutional separation of powers or our nation's commitment to a government of laws,' she wrote. Established after the 2008 financial crisis, the CFPB has long been a target of conservatives wanting to undermine financial regulations championed by Democrats in Congress. More appeals are possible, as are additional legal decisions on the law governing the CFPB. 'It will be cold comfort to Plaintiffs if they ultimately succeed on the merits in their challenge to the CFPB's shutdown only to discover that Defendants have put the agency in a hole from which it can never fully recover,' Pillard also wrote in her dissent. 'That would be the effect of the agency's decisions to fire all or virtually all employees who once worked at the agency, terminate every contract that supported their work, purge all the data they amassed, and ghost all the experts and organizations with whom they had built up beneficial working relationships.'
Yahoo
30-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
SEC Files to Dismiss Long-Running Lawsuit Against Binance
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission moved to drop its long-running lawsuit against crypto exchange Binance on Thursday, without providing an explanation in a court filing. The SEC and Binance filed a joint motion, noting that the case had already been paused while the SEC's new crypto task force worked to "develop a regulatory framework for crypto assets." "In the exercise of its discretion and as a policy matter, the Commission believes the dismissal of this Litigation is appropriate," the joint filing said. "... the Commission's decision to seek dismissal of this Litigation does not necessarily reflect the Commission's position in any other litigation or proceeding." The SEC has not published a framework yet, though lawmakers in the U.S. House of Representatives introduced their formal bill to define how the SEC and its sister agency, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, would each oversee digital assets earlier on Thursday. The parties want the case dismissed with prejudice, meaning the SEC would not be able to bring this lawsuit against Binance again in the future. The filing also includes provisions to block Binance or its affiliated entities and executives from filing a suit or complaint against the SEC tied to the lawsuit, which was brought in June 2023 against Binance, and Binance founder Changpeng CZ Zhao. Judge Amy Berman Jackson, who's overseeing the case, previously ruled that the SEC had brought plausible charges against the exchange and allowed most the lawsuit to proceed last year. In a statement, an external spokesperson for said they were "pleased that the SEC fully dismissed its charges against confirming what we have always known — that the company did not violate U.S. securities laws." "Today's news is a major milestone for our company, as putting this matter to rest allows us to focus entirely on growing our business and work on restoring our relationships that were impacted by the SEC," the statement said. "We are excited about the future of and crypto in the U.S. and look forward to continuing to offer access to crypto in the U.S., while maintaining our commitment to compliance and our customers." Thursday's filing just marks the latest withdrawal for the SEC, which already moved to drop over a dozen other investigations and lawsuits. Prior to 2025, the SEC was investigating non-fungible token marketplaces and suing crypto exchanges. Binance was just one exchange the SEC alleged was illegally operating as an unregistered broker, clearinghouse and exchange. Others included Coinbase and Kraken. The SEC's about-turn came after Donald Trump retook office as the U.S. President, appointing Commissioner Mark Uyeda as acting chair and nominating Paul Atkins to be the agency's full chair. Atkins was confirmed and sworn into office last month. Last week, Binance announced it would list USD1, a stablecoin issued by World Liberty Financial, a crypto company tied to Trump, some of Trump's children and some of his affiliates. Earlier Thursday, SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce said during an appearance at Bitcoin 2025 in Las Vegas that some crypto investors should not expect a bailout or government protection if they invest in speculative digital assets. UPDATE (May 29, 2025, 22:08 UTC): Adds additional detail. UPDATE (May 29, 22:45): Adds statement. UPDATE (May 29, 23:05): Adds USD1 note.
Yahoo
19-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Federal judge blocks Musk team's effort to shutter top consumer agency
A federal court has blocked the sweeping termination of staff at the top US consumer protection agency, a day after the Trump administration moved to axe about 1,500 of the agency's 1,700 workforce, while officials investigate whether the action violated existing judicial orders. The ruling from the judge Amy Berman Jackson put a legal hurdle in front of mass layoffs at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced on Thursday, which came after a federal appeals court modified – but did not eliminate – an injunction limiting the agency's ability to terminate employees. The administration did not immediately respond to a request for comment. It is unclear whether it will abide by the latest ruling. A handful of divisions have been completely eliminated by the administration, according to court filings, including the office of servicemember affairs, the office of older Americans, and the office of fair lending. Only eight employees remain in the office of consumer response, while the entire team responsible for the CFPB's data storage systems has been terminated. Related: Trump halts construction of big wind farm off New York coast: 'reckless and overreaching' The layoffs, via hundreds of reduction in force (RIF) letters sent on Thursday, are just the latest blow in an ongoing battle over the agency's bleak future. In February, Jackson had ordered a halt to terminations at the CFPB and barred the agency from deleting data or transferring reserve funds except for operational purposes. According to a declaration from an employee who had been laid off, filed under the pseudonym Alex Doe, this week's layoffs were managed by Gavin Kliger, a staffer at the tech billionaire Elon Musk's so-called 'department of government efficiency', or Doge. 'He kept the team up for 36 hours straight to ensure that the notices would go out yesterday (17 April).' That declaration also said that when team members raised concerns about court orders requiring 'particularized assessment' of employees, 'they were told that all that mattered was the numbers'. The staff union immediately filed a motion for an order to show cause, arguing the terminations violate the court's preliminary injunction which prohibited actions that 'would interfere with the performance of the defendants' statutory duties'. 'We started receiving our RIF notices yesterday afternoon and they went out in batches through the evening,' said one CFPB employee who requested anonymity fearing retaliation. 'As a result, large swaths of the work we do, including statutorily required work, won't get done.' Following the cuts, all affected employees will lose system access by 6.00pm local time on Friday, after which they will be placed on administrative leave until formal separation, according to a copy of the RIF reviewed by the Guardian. The senator Elizabeth Warren, who originally proposed creating the CFPB after the 2008 financial crisis, blasted the move. 'President Trump just gutted almost all CFPB staff, so the agency can't do its job of helping Americans who get scammed by big banks and giant corporations,' Warren said in a statement. 'Dismantling the CFPB in the face of a court order blocking an illegal shutdown is yet another assault on consumers and our democracy.' Many have pointed to the influence of Musk, who reportedly placed Doge employees inside the agency and has publicly made a call to 'delete' the CFPB for being duplicative of other regulators. Musk has been accused of being the mastermind behind the shutdown so it could benefit his planned financial services platform, X Money, as part of his social media platform's eventual aspiration to become an everything app. Since its creation, the bureau has recovered over $21bn for defrauded consumers through enforcement actions against major financial institutions, including a $3.7bn order against Wells Fargo in 2022. There has been broad support for the agency, with a September poll from Americans for Financial Reform finding that 91% of voters believed it is important to regulate financial services to make sure they are fair for consumers – including 95% of Democrats and 87% of Republicans. '[It] breaks my heart that they're just erasing so much work and goodwill,' said another laid-off CFPB employee. 'And people all over the country have no idea that the things they count on are disappearing.'
