Former President Trump's Administration Seeks High Court Permission to Dismiss Top Intellectual Property Director
The former president's government on Monday petitioned the nation's highest court to permit the removal of the head of the American copyright authority.
This emergency appeal comes about a month and a half after a national appellate court in Washington decided that the director, Shira Perlmutter, could not be unilaterally fired.
Nearly four weeks prior, the entire District of Columbia appeals court refused to reconsider that decision.
This case is the most recent in a line of cases concerning presidential power to appoint chosen heads at federal agencies.
The Supreme Court has generally permitted such dismissals, even as court disputes continue.
However, this specific matter concerns an bureau inside the Library of Congress. Perlmutter serves as the register of copyrights and also advises the legislature on intellectual property matters.
The solicitor general, D John Sauer, argued in the filing that, regardless of connections to Congress, the director “exercises administrative authority” in regulating copyrights.
Perlmutter claims she was terminated in May because the ex-leader disapproved with advice she gave to Congress in a document related to artificial intelligence.
She reportedly got an email from the White House notifying her that her role was “ended starting immediately,” according to her staff.
A split appellate group decided that Perlmutter could retain her job while the legal dispute moves forward.
“The Executive's claimed blatant interference with the work of a congressional officer, as she carries out statutorily authorized duties to counsel Congress, strikes us as a violation of the division of government authority,” wrote Justice Florence Pan for the appeals court.
Judge J Michelle Childs supported the opinion. Both judges were nominated to the appeals court by Democrat leader Joe Biden.
In opposition, Justice Justin Walker, a Trump appointee, argued that Perlmutter “uses executive authority in a host of manners.”
Perlmutter's lawyers have contended that she is a well-known intellectual property specialist. She has served as copyright director since former head librarian Carla Hayden selected her to the role in October 2020.
The former president appointed assistant attorney general Todd Blanche to succeed Hayden at the national library. The administration had fired Hayden following criticism from right-leaning groups that she was advancing a “woke” agenda.
