
Shifting Battlegrounds in Administrative Law, From Biden to Trump II
Because of the Biden administration’s ambitious regulatory agenda, federal courts over the last few years have had to address the statutory and constitutional boundaries up to which agencies can enact and enforce regulations. The U.S. Supreme Court and lower courts contended with the Biden administration over major policy initiatives, like vaccine mandates and student loan forgiveness, and the Supreme Court restrained federal agency power in landmark decisions.
January 13, 2025 at 01:30 PM
9 minute read
Because of the Biden administration’s ambitious regulatory agenda, federal courts over the last few years have had to address the statutory and constitutional boundaries up to which agencies can enact and enforce regulations. The U.S. Supreme Court and lower courts contended with the Biden administration over major policy initiatives, like vaccine mandates and student loan forgiveness, and the Supreme Court restrained federal agency power in landmark decisions. The court overruled Chevron deference, made it easier to avoid the six-year statute of limitations for challenging regulations under the Administrative Procedure Act, and made it more difficult for agencies to bring lawsuits in their home administrative forums.
Because the incoming Trump administration has promised deregulation and less aggressive agency enforcement, the administrative law battles will likely shift. Instead of focusing on the outer bounds of federal agency power, courts will likely have to tackle questions about federalism and the ability of states and special interest groups to impose (rather than impede) regulation through litigation. Historically, when federal agencies enforce regulation less aggressively or decline to promulgate rules, state and private enforcers step up activity to restrain industry. A reverse federalism emerges, where litigants fill regulatory gaps that they perceive at the federal level. That trend has become more pronounced in recent years, as politics have become more polarized. Many State AGs and advocacy groups have already announced lawfare strategies to challenge President-elect Trump’s deregulatory goals and to perpetuate some of the policies initiated by the Biden administration.
NOT FOR REPRINT
© 2025 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
You Might Like
View All
Corporate Disclosure Law Enjoys ‘Presumption of Constitutionality,’ Feds Tell Justices

GC of Florida State Agency Steps Down After Threatening TV Stations That Aired Abortion-Rights Ad

11th Circuit Rejects Private School's Religious Rights Claim When Stopped From Broadcasting Public Prayer

11th Circuit Allows Florida Transgender Health Care Ban to Continue Pending Full Appeal on Constitutionality of Law
Trending Stories
- 1'Translate Across Disciplines': Paul Hastings’ New Tech Transactions Leader
- 2Milbank’s Revenue and Profits Surge Following Demand Increases Across the Board
- 3Fourth Quarter Growth in Demand and Worked Rates Coincided with Countercyclical Dip, New Report Indicates
- 4Public Notices/Calendars
- 5Monday Newspaper
Who Got The Work
J. Brugh Lower of Gibbons has entered an appearance for industrial equipment supplier Devco Corporation in a pending trademark infringement lawsuit. The suit, accusing the defendant of selling knock-off Graco products, was filed Dec. 18 in New Jersey District Court by Rivkin Radler on behalf of Graco Inc. and Graco Minnesota. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Zahid N. Quraishi, is 3:24-cv-11294, Graco Inc. et al v. Devco Corporation.
Who Got The Work
Rebecca Maller-Stein and Kent A. Yalowitz of Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer have entered their appearances for Hanaco Venture Capital and its executives, Lior Prosor and David Frankel, in a pending securities lawsuit. The action, filed on Dec. 24 in New York Southern District Court by Zell, Aron & Co. on behalf of Goldeneye Advisors, accuses the defendants of negligently and fraudulently managing the plaintiff's $1 million investment. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Vernon S. Broderick, is 1:24-cv-09918, Goldeneye Advisors, LLC v. Hanaco Venture Capital, Ltd. et al.
Who Got The Work
Attorneys from A&O Shearman has stepped in as defense counsel for Toronto-Dominion Bank and other defendants in a pending securities class action. The suit, filed Dec. 11 in New York Southern District Court by Bleichmar Fonti & Auld, accuses the defendants of concealing the bank's 'pervasive' deficiencies in regards to its compliance with the Bank Secrecy Act and the quality of its anti-money laundering controls. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Arun Subramanian, is 1:24-cv-09445, Gonzalez v. The Toronto-Dominion Bank et al.
Who Got The Work
Crown Castle International, a Pennsylvania company providing shared communications infrastructure, has turned to Luke D. Wolf of Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani to fend off a pending breach-of-contract lawsuit. The court action, filed Nov. 25 in Michigan Eastern District Court by Hooper Hathaway PC on behalf of The Town Residences LLC, accuses Crown Castle of failing to transfer approximately $30,000 in utility payments from T-Mobile in breach of a roof-top lease and assignment agreement. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Susan K. Declercq, is 2:24-cv-13131, The Town Residences LLC v. T-Mobile US, Inc. et al.
Who Got The Work
Wilfred P. Coronato and Daniel M. Schwartz of McCarter & English have stepped in as defense counsel to Electrolux Home Products Inc. in a pending product liability lawsuit. The court action, filed Nov. 26 in New York Eastern District Court by Poulos Lopiccolo PC and Nagel Rice LLP on behalf of David Stern, alleges that the defendant's refrigerators’ drawers and shelving repeatedly break and fall apart within months after purchase. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Joan M. Azrack, is 2:24-cv-08204, Stern v. Electrolux Home Products, Inc.
Featured Firms
Law Offices of Gary Martin Hays & Associates, P.C.
(470) 294-1674
Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone
(857) 444-6468
Smith & Hassler
(713) 739-1250