Judge Directs Trump Administration to Rehire Dismissed Merit Systems Protection Board Chair

February 18, 2025 TruthUSA

President Donald Trump has dismissed Cathy A. Harris, who has held her position since 2022 following her confirmation by President Joe Biden.

On February 18, a federal judge mandated President Donald Trump and other federal officials to reinstate Cathy A. Harris, who Trump recently discharged from her role as chairwoman of the U.S. Merit Systems Protection Board.

U.S. District Judge Rudolph Contreras issued the order, temporarily favoring Harris.

The Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) is an independent agency within the executive branch that addresses employment conflicts in the executive sector. Harris has been in her role since 2022 after being nominated by President Joe Biden and confirmed by the Senate.

On February 10, the White House notified Harris of her immediate termination. The email did not provide any rationale for the dismissal.

Harris filed a lawsuit the next day, claiming that under the law, she can only be removed “for inefficiency, neglect of duty, or malfeasance in office.”

In her request for a temporary restraining order, Harris sought for Contreras to rule her removal unlawful and to prevent government officials from treating her as if she had been dismissed.

The legal motion asserts that Harris is likely to prevail unless her protection against removal without cause is deemed unconstitutional, which her attorneys believe is unlikely according to the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Humphrey’s Executor (1935), upholding similar limitations on the president’s authority to dismiss federal commission members.

“Interim relief is additionally warranted because Ms. Harris is experiencing irreparable harm due to the Defendants’ actions, which are depriving her of her rightful position as a member of the MSPB,” her lawyers stated.

In their rebuttal, government attorneys asserted that the president acted within his constitutional rights in terminating Harris.

“Due to the significant executive authority of the MSPB, its members fall firmly within the President’s removal power. Hence, Humphrey’s Executor— which established a narrow exception for multimember bodies performing ‘quasi-judicial’ or ‘quasi-legislative’ roles that do not exercise executive power—does not apply here,” they claimed.

Judge Contreras indicated that the Supreme Court’s ruling and subsequent decisions mean that Harris should not be terminated without cause until her term concludes.

“The Court therefore finds that Harris is likely to demonstrate that her dismissal as an MSPB member was unlawful,” he wrote.

The judge also concurred that Harris would face irreparable harm without the restraining order.

He clarified that the relief is provisional and that Harris could seek a preliminary injunction for more permanent protection as the case progresses. Should she choose to do so, she must submit a motion by February 24, with a hearing scheduled for March 3.

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