Overview

• The Eighth Circuit held the challenges in abeyance until the SEC either renews its defense or reconsiders the 2024 final rules through notice-and-comment rulemaking.
• The court said it is the SEC’s responsibility to decide whether the rules are rescinded, modified, or defended, not the judiciary’s.
• The final rules remain stayed, and the court said the abeyance will not cause material prejudice.
• The litigation can resume if the SEC starts defending the rules again or after any reconsideration process.
• Legal analysts say the directive will likely delay a ruling on whether the climate rule exceeded the SEC’s authority, after the agency earlier abandoned its defense.