FAYETTEVILLE — After being reinstated and paused again by panels of the United States 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in December, the Corporate Transparency Act has a March 25 date before the whole court, unless the U.S. Supreme Court gets to it first.
On New Year’s Eve, the Department of Justice asked SCOTUS to stay an injunction on the Corporate Transparency Act issued Dec. 3 by a federal court in Texas. In the days prior to the DOJ request, a panel of the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals stayed the injunction on Dec. 23. A second panel of the same court reinstated the injunction on Dec. 26.
The Corporate Transparency Act, stayed and reinstated in December, now has a March 25 date with the full U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, unless the U.S. Supreme Court gets to it first. NALC Senior Staff Attorney Beth Rumley says that until the courts act again, filing is voluntary. (U of A System Division of Agriculture file photo)
In its filing to the Supreme Court, the DOJ said it expects to succeed, in part because the law’s “requirements fall comfortably within Congress’s authority under the Commerce Clause to regulate economic activities,” and are “also necessary and proper to effectuate several of Congress’s enumerated powers, including the power to regulate interstate and foreign commerce and to collect taxes, as well as Congress’s powers with respect to foreign affairs.”
It's not known if, or when, SCOTUS might take up the case. The court is currently working through cases set for its October 2024 term, which includes cases scheduled through March 2025.