Liberal Ninth Circuit Freezes Lower Court Ruling, Enables Trump to End TPS for Migrants From Three Countries
A federal appeals court long viewed as a bastion of liberal jurisprudence handed President Donald Trump a notable legal break Monday night, giving his administration latitude to proceed with dismantling deportation protections tied to a decades-old immigration program.
In an emergency order, the San Francisco-based U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit paused a lower court decision that had blocked Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem from ending Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for nationals of Honduras, Nepal, and Nicaragua.
The decision allows the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to move forward while the broader legal challenge continues.
The three-judge panel determined the Trump administration had demonstrated a strong likelihood of success on appeal, concluding that Noem’s decision to terminate the protections was likely lawful under federal administrative standards and not arbitrary or capricious under the Administrative Procedure Act.
The order temporarily halts a December ruling from U.S. District Judge Trina Thompson that had invalidated the terminations.
In an emergency order, the San Francisco-based U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit paused a lower court decision that had blocked Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem from ending Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for nationals of Honduras, Nepal, and Nicaragua.
The decision allows the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to move forward while the broader legal challenge continues.
The three-judge panel determined the Trump administration had demonstrated a strong likelihood of success on appeal, concluding that Noem’s decision to terminate the protections was likely lawful under federal administrative standards and not arbitrary or capricious under the Administrative Procedure Act.
The order temporarily halts a December ruling from U.S. District Judge Trina Thompson that had invalidated the terminations.
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