Supreme Court Overturns Humphrey's Executor, Expands Presidential Removal Power While Sparing the Fed (June 2026)
On June 29, 2026, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the 91-year-old precedent Humphrey's Executor v. United States, ruling 6-3 in Trump v. Slaughter that President Trump's 2025 at-will firing of Democratic FTC Commissioner Rebecca Kelly Slaughter was lawful. Chief Justice John Roberts, writing for the conservative majority, held that officials exercising executive power must remain removable by the President, effectively ending Congress's ability to shield independent-agency commissioners from at-will removal. In a separate 5-4 decision in Trump v. Cook, the Court held that Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook could remain in her post for now, carving out the central bank as a constitutionally distinct institution. Trump celebrated the FTC ruling as a historic expansion of presidential power, while Democrats and the affected officials warned it threatens the independence of watchdog agencies. Justice Sonia Sotomayor read a summary of her dissent from the bench, a rare signal of strong disagreement.