Overview

• In a 6–3 decision in Trump v. CASA, the Supreme Court ruled that universal injunctions exceed the authority of the Judiciary Act of 1789 without addressing the merits of the birthright citizenship order
• Lower courts have remanded key cases and are tailoring injunctions to apply solely to the parties before them while the administration files motions to lift nationwide stays
• Justice Amy Coney Barrett’s majority opinion highlighted class actions as a path to broad relief and Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s concurrence noted that vacatur of agency rules under the Administrative Procedure Act offers similar nationwide effect
• Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson dissented, warning that curbing universal injunctions could erode judicial checks on executive actions and threaten constitutional rights
• Legal experts and advocacy groups have already amended complaints and launched state-led suits under the new standard to secure comprehensive relief across jurisdictions