A federal judge has ordered the reinstatement of Gwynne Wilcox, a Democratic member of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) whom President Donald Trump fired shortly after his inauguration in January 2025. The ruling represents a significant check on presidential power over independent agencies.
U.S. District Judge Beryl A. Howell declared in her Thursday ruling that Trump’s removal of Wilcox was “unlawful” and “therefore null and void.” Wilcox, who was appointed by former President Joe Biden with a term set to run through August 2028, was the first Black woman to serve on the NLRB.
“The President’s interpretation of the scope of his constitutional power – or, more aptly, his aspiration – is flat wrong,” Howell wrote in her opinion. “The President does not have the authority to terminate members of the National Labor Relations Board at will, and his attempt to fire plaintiff from her position on the Board was a blatant violation of the law.”
Trump’s firing of Wilcox in January eliminated the NLRB’s quorum, effectively paralyzing the agency responsible for enforcing collective-bargaining law and protecting workers’ rights to unionize. With only two members remaining on the five-member board, the NLRB was unable to issue decisions.
The administration’s lawyers argued that NLRB members should be “removable at will to ensure democratic accountability.” However, the National Labor Relations Act specifically states that board members may only be removed for “neglect of duty” or “malfeasance,” and only after being given “notice and hearing.” Judge Howell noted in her ruling that no president had previously attempted to remove an NLRB member.
In her strongly worded opinion, Howell criticized Trump’s understanding of presidential powers. She even referenced a February 15 post by Trump on X declaring, “He who saves his Country does not violate any Law.”
“A President who touts an image of himself as a ‘king’ or a ‘dictator,’ perhaps as his vision of effective leadership, fundamentally misapprehends the role under Article II of the U.S. Constitution,” Howell wrote.
Wilcox filed her lawsuit seeking reinstatement shortly after her January firing. “When Congress established the National Labor Relations Board almost 90 years ago, it made sure that the law would protect its independence from political influence,” Wilcox said in a statement at the time. “My removal, without cause or process, directly violates that law.”
The judge’s ruling rests in part on a 90-year-old Supreme Court precedent, Humphrey’s Executor v. United States, which limits the president’s power to remove officials from independent, quasi-judicial bodies. In that 1935 case, the Court ruled that the president’s removal power is limited for officials of independent regulatory agencies, holding that they can only be removed for the causes specified by Congress.
Trump’s administration has quickly appealed the ruling, setting up a potential Supreme Court showdown over executive power. The case is one of several recent court decisions finding that Trump unlawfully dismissed Senate-confirmed members of independent agencies, including officials from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the Federal Election Commission.
Former NLRB member Wilma Liebman told HuffPost that Trump’s firing of Wilcox was “shocking” and threatened the agency’s role as an independent enforcer of the law. “It has the intent, I suppose, of trying to transform a neutral, objective, adjudicatory body into Trump’s henchmen,” Liebman said. “To me, it seems that the obvious first intent is to create chaos and make the agency inoperative.”
The ruling comes amid broader efforts by the Trump administration to assert sweeping executive control over independent agencies. These efforts include removing inspectors general and ordering White House review of regulations issued by independent agencies.
Legal experts believe the Supreme Court’s conservative majority may be receptive to the argument that the president should have broader authority over independent agencies. The Court could potentially revisit and narrow or overturn the Humphrey’s Executor precedent.
However, Judge Howell made it clear that until the Supreme Court changes existing law, current precedent supports Wilcox’s reinstatement. The judge’s ruling restores the NLRB’s three-member quorum, allowing the agency to resume its functions protecting workers’ rights to unionize and collectively bargain.
The case highlights the ongoing tension between presidential authority and the congressional intent to establish independent agencies that operate outside direct presidential control. As the appeals process moves forward, the ultimate resolution may reshape the relationship between the executive branch and independent regulatory agencies for decades to come.
