TBA Law Blog


Posted by: Julia Wilburn on Jul 7, 2023

The U.S. Supreme Court will hear an appeal from the Biden administration over the use of in-house judges to handle cases brought by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Bloomberg News reports that the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Congress violated the Seventh Amendment, which protects the right to a jury trial in civil lawsuits, by allowing the SEC to ask an administrative law judge to impose penalties rather than going to federal court. The 5th Circuit also said Congress gave the commission too much leeway to decide which cases will go before its in-house judges. The appeal from the Biden administration asserts that the ruling will have “massive practical consequences” across the government if it is not overturned.