Supreme Court Will Hear Arguments Over Firing Of Fed’s Lisa Cook — But Allows Her To Stay On The Job For Now

The Supreme Court is allowing Federal Reserve board member Lisa Cook to remain on the job for now, but has agreed to hear arguments on an expedited basis on whether President Donald Trump can fire her over disputed allegations of mortgage fraud.

The justices said Wednesday they will take up the case over Cook’s firing in January, although there’s no guarantee when they will rule.

The high court’s move means Cook, a Biden appointee, is likely to continue to have influence over sensitive interest-rate-setting decisions for months as the legal battle continues.

Federal law allows the president to fire Fed members only “for cause” — a standard that has traditionally been understood to mean malfeasance in office. Trump tried to fire Cook in August, arguing that he has good cause because he has claimed that Cook, before she joined the Fed, inaccurately listed two different homes as “primary residences” on separate mortgage applications. Cook hasn’t been charged criminally or civilly with misconduct, and she has denied committing any fraud.

Last month, Reuters reported on documents that cast doubt on Trump’s claim that Cook committed fraud.

A federal district judge found the firing violated Cook’s rights because she wasn’t given an opportunity to formally contest the fraud claim. That judge allowed her to continue in her job while litigation continued, and a federal appeals court panel agreed, prompting the Trump administration to file an emergency appeal at the Supreme Court.

Rather than ruling on Trump’s appeal right away, the high court took the rare step of scheduling it for oral argument.

In other cases involving Trump’s attempts to fire leaders of executive branch agencies, the Supreme Court has issued interim orders preventing those leaders from staying in their jobs while their cases proceed. But the court did not take the same approach with Cook — a possible signal that the court will adopt a more skeptical view of Trump’s authority to fire her.

No justice indicated any dissent from the court’s brief order scheduling the case for arguments in January. The order gave no explanation for permitting Cook to remain in her post in the meantime.

The order positions Cook to remain on the Fed board through at least two more scheduled rate-setting meetings: one later this month and one in December. She could remain through additional meetings next year if the court rules in her favor or takes a lengthy period to rule after the January arguments.