English v Trump: Round 2

The federal district court in Washington heard oral argument this morning (December 22, 2017) in the case of English v. Trump, the challenge brought by Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Deputy Director Leandra English to President Trump's appointment of Mick Mulvaney as Acting Director of the CFPB. The case largely turns on whether the Federal Vacancies Reform Act (FVRA) authorized Mulvaney's appointment, as the government claims, or whether the Dodd Frank Act instead directs that the Deputy Director of the agency – and only the Deputy Director – can serve as the Acting Director when the Director resigns. The oral argument lasted nearly two hours and was lively and engaging. Judge Timothy Kelly was extremely well-prepared and ran the argument along topical lines about which he had questions. Judge Kelly did not rule from the bench, but most of his questions were for English's counsel and based on the nature of the questions it seems quite likely that Judge