Supreme Court rejects request to stop immigration judges’ lawsuit

WASHINGTON (TNND) — The Supreme Court rejected a request from the Trump administration to immediately stop a free speech lawsuit from immigration judges over restrictions on their public speaking engagements.

A one-paragraph order from the high court with no listed dissents denied a request to dismiss the lawsuit but still left the door open for the government to try again once the case progresses.

“At this stage, the Government has not demonstrated that it will suffer irreparable harm without a stay,” the order says.

The judges sued over a policy put in place during the Biden administration banning them from making statements about immigration or the agency that employs them in a personal capacity. The restrictions violated their First Amendment rights and interfered with their ability to lecture at universities or speak with community groups, the National Association of Immigration Judges said.

While the lawsuit is centered around free speech, justices did not rule on that aspect and were instead focused on what the proper venue is for resolving complaints of government employees. The Justice Department sought to stop the lawsuit from proceeding before a federal district judge and argued it should go before the Merit Systems Protection Board, which oversees federal government employee disputes.

The outcome of the case could expand to other areas and expand the president’s authority for firing federal workers.

It was a rare loss for the Trump administration at the Supreme Court that has regularly ruled in its favor as the administration files emergency appeals at a record pace. So far, the administration has filed 32 emergency applications the White House blames on judges overstepping their authority to block Trump’s agenda.