The past few weeks have been busy for cases originating in the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals. The Supreme Court of the United States granted certiorari in three cases, two of them related, and issued a decision today. The two related cases involve the interpretation of the Administrative Procedure Act, the third case granted cert. involves the delegation doctrine, while the High Court decision issued today interprets the Clean Air Act.

For details on these cases, read on.

Perez v. Mortgage Bankers Association and Nikols v. Mortgage Bankers Association – Cert. Granted

This pair of cases was initiated by Mortgage Bankers Association challenging the Department of Labor’s interpretation of an agency regulation, determining the status of mortgage brokers. Under a 2006 interpretation, mortgage brokers were exempt from overtime wage requirements. In 2010, the DoL changed course, and determined that mortgage brokers were not exempt from the overtime wage requirements.

Department of Transportation v. Association of American Railroads – Cert. Granted

Section 207 of the Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act of 2008 requires the Federal Railroad Administration and Amtrak to work together to “to jointly develop performance measures to enhance enforcement of the statutory priority Amtrak’s passenger rail service has over other trains.” The Association of American Railroads sued the Department of Transportation arguing that the law is unconstitutional, and the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals held that Section 207 “constitutes an unlawful delegation of regulatory power to a private entity.” Today, the Supreme Court granted cert in this case and it will interpret the not-oft-used delegation doctrine.

Utility Air Regulatory Group v. Environmental Protection Agency – Decision

Today, the Court issued an opinion written by Justice Scalia, in this term’s most anticipated environmental decision. At issue was the interpretation of the Clean Air Act and the Environmental Protection Agency’s interpretation of the Act.

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