TBA Law Blog


Posted by: Azya Thornton on Mar 7, 2025

The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday denied the State Department's application to vacate a district court’s order to issue payments of some foreign development aid funds. Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, Amy Coney Barrett and Ketanji Brown Jackson voted to vacate the order. In a brief unsigned opinion, the justices stated that the district court should clarify how the State Department must fulfill its obligation, as the court’s deadline for issuing the aid had already passed. On Inauguration Day, President Donald Trump paused the disbursement of all foreign development aid for 90 days. According to SCOTUSblog, the district court is expected to hold a hearing on the aid groups’ motion for a preliminary injunction and if granted, would suspend the freeze on foreign-assistance funding going forward. This means that the dispute could return to the Supreme Court as an emergency appeal again soon.