Showing posts with label Deference. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Deference. Show all posts

DC Circuit: Jane Doe v. SEC

 Although the list of examples in the statute isn't explicitly an exclusive one, deference to the authoritative, considered interpretation of the agency within its competency asserting the exclusivity of the list is warranted.  Expressio unius would require an exclusive list.  

CONCURRENCE:

When a statute lists three means for accomplishing something, there are three means of accomplishing something under the statute.  Expressio unius applies.

Jane Doe v. SEC

Fourth Circuit: Evens Julmice v. Merrick Garland

 Silence of the immigration statute as to whether the citizen whose child is seeking to immigrate needs to be alive at the time of application isn't sufficient to justify deference to the agency's interpretation imposing the requirement.

Evens Julmice v. Merrick Garland

First Circuit: Ass'n Hosp. del Maestro, Inc. v. Becerra

 

Agencies can exercise discretion only in places of ambiguity or silence; they are unable to amend a clear statutory mandate that seems at odds with the purposes of the legislation. Agency did not err, and the rulemaking did not run afoul of the APA.

Agency's implementation according to statute did not offend Equal Protection; proof of discriminatory of intent would also be needed.

Mandate requiring extension of policy in the same manner and to the extent that it applies to existing facilities mans that the same methodology should be implemented to the same extent, not that the facilities should be funded to the same extent.

http://media.ca1.uscourts.gov/pdf.opinions/19-1475P-01A.pdf



Tenth Circuit: Birhanu v. Wilkinson

 

By considering the information provided and holding a hearing on the matter, the immigration judge took care in determining the competency of the pro se alien defendant sufficient to assure fundamental rights of Due Process; although the alien reported that the voices that he was hearing in his head disturbed his thought processes, his demeanor appeared sufficiently lucid and responsive.

Right to counsel claim under the Rehabilitation Act required administrative exhaustion.

For immigration law purposes, recklessly threatening substantial property damage with actual intent to interrupt public access to a portion of the building is a crime of moral turpitude.  The specific intent of the state statute is a sufficiently aggravating factor under circuit precedent.

Although subjective ability to dissociate and reflect is relevant to determining whether two acts are divisible, a three day gap sufficed to establish the division as a matter of law.

Chevron deference to agency on the question of whether the agency should consider the insanity element of the criminal plea, as a prior apparently contradictory agency interpretation spoke to the evidentiary bounds of the agency's consideration, and the cited opinion addressed the appropriate substantive grounds for the agency's consideration.

Concur/dissent:

Agency shoudl have considered mental health element of plea in relevant conviction; arbitrary application of precedent dejustifies deference.


Birhanu v. Wilkinson

Second Circuit: Cuthill v. Blinken

 

When a minor child of a newly naturalized alien takes their place in the visa queue, the legislative purpose of the statutory tolling of the child's age for the purpose of the pre-naturalization visa dictates that its tolled "statutory age" be applied within the statutory scheme for the post-naturalization visa.

The legislative intent is sufficiently clear to make Chevron deference inapplicable.


Cuthill v. Blinken

Tenth Circuit: Aposhian v. Wilkinson

 

Dissents from both vacatur of en banc order and the reinstatement of the panel holding.

Dissent: The regulation is outside the statute; if the government doesn't raise Chevron, the deference claim is waived; lenity counsels the reading of the statute to the contrary.

Dissent: Deference is an aspect of statutory interpretation, which is the function of the courts.

Dissent: Criminal laws are not subject to Chevron deference.


Aposhian v. Wilkinson

Ninth Circuit: Linda Larson v. Andrew Saul


Skidmore deference to agency determination that military employment in the civilian sector is not within a SSA exception for wages earned wholly through military service.  Circuit split flagged.

Federal Circuit: Prestonback v. US


Military cadet's agreement to recoupment of educational costs upon voluntary early end of service is a statutory agreement, not a contract with the government.

Under Skidmore deference, the government can reasonably decide that involuntary separation from the military presumptively resulted from a voluntary refusal to achieve sufficient performance reviews.

Second Circuit: UnitedHealthcare of New York, v. Lacewell


As the scheme of regulation at issue had many remedies to ensure state compliance, federal courts had jurisdiction to equitably enjoin the prospective enforcement of state agency determinations; the court therefore had subject matter jurisdiction over the claim.

As evinced by the direct and positive effect on the federal regulatory scheme, state risk allocation determinations are subject to conflict preemption by the federal statute; informal consultations with the agency were not sufficiently final to signal agency approval, and the agency's appellate-stage amicus asserting preemption is accorded Auer deference.


DC Circuit: American Hospital Association v. Alex Azar, II


Jurisdiction-strip statute circumscribed by ultra vires agency actions -- if actions were in excess of the statutory authority - even if not plainly and clearly so -  the jurisdiction strip doesn't apply.

Where the jurisdiction strip merges with merits, deference still applies, since otherwise there would be a wider scope of review, contrary to law's intent.

Implementation provisions referencing statute that the agency is interpreting doesn't preclude implementation rulemaking as to the latter, since the latter recites other implementation mechanisms.

Agency reading is reasonable, given text and statutory context, so jurisdiction strip applies.

Arguendo, even without a basis for Article III jurisdiction, under statutory jurisdiction, the rulemaking doesn't conflict with a law regulating such reimbursements.


DC Circuit: Association for Community v. TREA


Inclusion of disputed term in a subsequent statute regulating the matter did not constitute an implied repeal of the earlier statute's definition.

Ability to renew a plan of limited duration doesn't make agency designation of "short-term" unreasonable.

Agency rule reasonably balances conflicting policy agendas.

Dissent: Rule doesn't sufficiently reconcile statutory scheme as a whole.


DC Circuit: Grace v. William Barr


District court had sufficient statutory jurisdiction to review policy document addressing substantive law invoked by the procedural law subject to judicial review; challenge in individual cases would prove impractical.

Policy change announced in agency adjudication not insulated from review by the bar on review of individual cases; separate jurisdiction strip statute evaded in this case, as the policy affects both the matter covered by the jurisdiction strip and other matters.

Administrative standard adopted under Chevron logic is arbitrary and capricious, as it is inherently bifurcated, and could result in different outcomes in identical situations based on which standard was used.

New choice of law policy arbitrary and capricious, not sufficiently distinguished as a change from prior practice, and the justifications advanced are not in the rulemaking itself.

Policy guidance appropriately states the rule on circularity of harm developed in agency adjudications.

Language in guidance document suggesting prospective application appropriately qualified by statements of generality, and therefore not a new rule.

Jurisdiction strip referred to the operation of the statute, not rulemaking found to be inconsistent with the statute.  (Perhaps.  This is quick work.  Don't ever rely.)

Dissent:

Jurisdiction strip statutes apply, allowing review of law and application of law to fact would undercut the purposes of the bars to review.  


Ninth Circuit: Sky-Med, Inc. v. FAA


Agency adjudication did not have jurisdiction, since the two notices of violation were consolidated into a single civil claim in excess of the statutory maximum.  The Federal courts have exclusive jurisdiction over claims with an amount in conttroversy in excess of the statutory maximum during the actual pendency of the civil proceeding.



Second Circuit: Cappetta v. Comm’r of Soc. Sec. Admin.

Deference to agency determination that reporting work activity is material; although the consideration is not dispositive of a benefits fraud claim, it does speak to some elements of the determination.

Agency retained the power to reverse the ALJ's finding.

Although the law only penalizes omissions, agency could charge benefits recipient with non-reporting on a monthly basis, since the statute also bars withholding required disclosures.

etc, etc...

http://www.ca2.uscourts.gov/decisions/isysquery/e79595db-c3ea-48e1-95ea-ab87f17d70cb/3/doc/16-3540_opn.pdf#xml=http://www.ca2.uscourts.gov/decisions/isysquery/e79595db-c3ea-48e1-95ea-ab87f17d70cb/3/hilite/


Third Circuit: Carol Vorchheimer v. Philadelphian Owners Association

To state a claim for denial of necessary housing accommodation, plaintiff must establish the necessity of the accommodation beyond alternate solutions proposed by the landlord.  Joint agency statement indicating that the tenant has a right to their suggested modification has little power to persuade, as it does not explicitly purport to interpret the statute.

http://www2.ca3.uscourts.gov/opinarch/171738p.pdf

Eighth Circuit: Bottoms Farm Partnership v. Sonny Perdue

Agency's interpretation of the statute requiring surveying of the rice fields as a condition of insurability is valid under Chevron deference; there is no implicit requirement that the policy be good farming practice.

Under the terms of the insurance contract and the governing agency's construction of its own jurisdiction, an agency submitted a binding and dispositive interpretation of the relevant guideline during the arbitration process.

http://media.ca8.uscourts.gov/opndir/18/07/172164P.pdf



National Environmental Development Association's Clean Air Project v. EPA

As the statute unambiguously refers to regional inconsistencies from the delegation of the Administrator's powers, and moreover, implementing judicially-created inconsistencies is a reasonable resolution of the (un)ambiguity, no error in agency's inconsistent remedies implemented in response to bifurcated judicial review.

https://www.cadc.uscourts.gov/internet/opinions.nsf/C030B5F7DB87A8DB852582A600521E70/$file/16-1344-1734993.pdf

Sixth Circuit: Sunrise Cooperative v. United States Dep't of Agric.



Agency's regulation of benefit plan foreclosed by Chevron step one: although there have been substantial changes in the business entity, the statute unambiguously qualifies the entity as a legitimate recipient.


http://www.opn.ca6.uscourts.gov/opinions.pdf/18a0104p-06.pdf

First Circuit: Coskery v. Berryhill



Dicta: Deference to agency view that amendment of regulation didn't have retroactive effect.

ALJ's adverse credibility determination can be upheld on other grounds.

ALJ considered appropriately broad range of evidence.


http://media.ca1.uscourts.gov/pdf.opinions/17-1886P-01A.pdf

Seventh Circuit: Robert Schaefer v. Walker Bros. Enterprises, Inc.


FLSA, Deference, Administrative


To determine whether additional duties are related to or incidental to tipped duties, look to logical relation to the tipped duties, not industry practice.

No Auer deference to agency boilerplate language for statutory notification of rights.


Robert Schaefer v.  Walker Bros. Enterprises, Inc.