Megan Barbero

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On June 29, 2026, the Supreme Court held in a 6-3 decision in Trump v. Slaughter that the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Act’s for-cause removal provision is unconstitutional. The Court overruled Humphrey’s Executor v. United States and held that statutory restrictions on the President’s ability to remove FTC Commissioners violate the separation of powers.

The separation of powers is a fundamental tenet of our democracy. The United States Constitution diffuses the authority of the federal government across three branches, each with a distinct set of constitutional responsibilities. Exercising its legislative authority, Congress has created administrative agencies—federal organizations housed in the executive branch who act with power delegated from Congress to promulgate rules, investigate violations of those rules, and carry out adjudications. For decades, Congress made choices about not only the structure of those agencies, but also the degree of direct presidential control over agency leadership.

Continue Reading Supreme Court Overrules Humphrey’s Executor and Permits At-Will Removal of FTC Commissioners

On Wednesday, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Federal Communications Commission v. Consumers’ Research (consolidated with SHLB Coalition v. Consumers’ Research), a case about the role of executive administrative agencies and congressional delegations of power to those agencies that could revitalize the long-dormant nondelegation doctrine.

This case has broad implications for administrative law generally, but for agencies that are empowered to assess fees or that delegate to private entities in particular. Notably, similar arguments about the doctrine were used to challenge some of the FTC’s more aggressive efforts under Lina Khan, former chair of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) . An affirmance would invite more aggressive challenges to all sorts of agency actions where arguably Congress’s delegation is unclear or goes too far.

Continue Reading Supreme Court Hears Oral Argument in Nondelegation Case Implicating the Powers of Administrative Agencies

On March 18, President Trump fired the two Democratic commissioners of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). The removals of Alvaro Bedoya and Rebecca Kelly Slaughter are the latest in a series of executive actions that will limit the agency’s independence. 

They also present a direct challenge to Humphrey’s Executor v. United States, the Supreme Court’s 1935 decision holding that Congress may limit the president’s authority to remove members of the FTC without good cause. Both Slaughter and Bedoya stated that they had been “illegally fired.” If the commissioners challenge their terminations, the Supreme Court may be forced to confront the question of whether Humphrey’s Executor should be overruled—an issue the Court has avoided in several recent cases that significantly limited the decision’s application to other agencies, without overruling it. 

Continue Reading Trump Fires Democratic FTC Commissioners, Setting Up a Direct Challenge to Humphrey’s Executor