Justices for the U.S. Supreme Court attend Trump's inaugural ceremony on Jan. 20, 2025, at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. (Ricky Carioti /The Washington Post via Getty Images)
Slaughter also argued her removal violates the Federal Trade Commission Act, or a 1914 law passed by Congress that shields FTC members from being removed by a president except in circumstances of "inefficiency, neglect of duty, or malfeasance in office."
A federal judge sided with Slaughter's lawyers in July, agreeing that her firing unlawfully exceeded Trump's executive branch powers and ordered her reinstated. The Supreme Court in September stayed that decision temporarily, allowing Trump's firing to remain in effect pending their review.
The Supreme Court's willingness to review the case is a sign that justices might be ready to do away completely with Humphrey's protections, which have already been weakened significantly over the last 20 years. Allowing Humphey's to be watered down further, or overturned completely, could allow sitting presidents to wield more authority in ordering the at-will firing of members of other federal regulatory agencies, including the National Labor Relations Board and the Securities and Exchange Commission, among others, and replacing them with persons of their choosing.
The six conservative justices on the high court signaled as much when they agreed to review the case earlier this year. (Justices split along ideological lines in agreeing to take up the case, with Justices Elena Kagan, Sonia Sotomayor, and Ketanji Brown Jackson dissenting.)
.APPEALS COURT BLOCKS TRUMP FROM FIRING FEDERAL BOARD MEMBERS, TEES UP SUPREME COURT FIGHT
Federal Trade Commission Commissioners Rebecca Kelly Slaughter (L) chats with Alvaro Bedoya (R) before FTC Chair Lina Khan testifies during a House Judiciary Committee hearing in the Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on July 13, 2023. (Shuran Huang for The Washington Post via Getty Images)
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The arguments in Trump v. Slaughter will be closely watched and are expected to inform how the court will consider a similar case in January, centered on Trump's attempted ouster of Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook.
Since taking office, Trump has signed hundreds of executive orders and ordered sweeping personnel actions that have restructured federal agencies and led to mass layoffs across federal agencies, including leaders that were believed to be insulated from the whims of a sitting president.
Breanne Deppisch is a national politics reporter for Fox News Digital covering the Trump administration, with a focus on the Justice Department, FBI and other national news. She previously covered national politics at the Washington Examiner and The Washington Post, with additional bylines in Politico Magazine, the Colorado Gazette and others. You can send tips to Breanne at Breanne.Deppisch@fox.com, or follow her on X at @breanne_dep.
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