A ruling on November 18 by a federal appeals court that the Equestrian Safety and Integrity Act was formally unconstitutional may not soon turn the equestrian world upside down and end it all. The final outcome of the ruling could face more scrutiny than a deadly heat at the Kentucky Horse Racing.
Proceedings at the higher levels of the nation’s judicial system move with consideration. Depending on what happens, it is possible that resolving a HISA case can take months while moving through various channels. The invalidation of the Federal Act establishing a new Fifth Circuit regulatory program is a call of considerable weight and one that is likely to be subject to much more scrutiny.
The opinion that the HISA is unconstitutional cannot come into force unless and until a so-called mandated organism is issued by the Fifth Round. All sources agree that the earliest possible date is January 10, 2023.
Among the options offered by HISA and the Federal Trade Commission, an agency of the U.S. government, is a recommendation for reconsideration by the three-judge panel that made the ruling, but it is very likely that the This method will do nothing but buy some time.
Another approach is to ask for a so-called review of the case by the entire group of judges sitting in the Fifth Circle. There’s plenty of time to do that before January 10, and if the request is approved, the quest won’t go into effect pending en banc review. The en banc review will essentially restart the process that began after Judge James Wesley Hendrix of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas declared HISA constitutional. His decision was overturned by a three-judge panel of the Fifth Circle.
If and when a motion is about to be filed by the Fifth Circuit, HISA and FTC attorneys have the option of asking the U.S. Supreme Court to issue a stay order pending review by the high court. If granted, that would impede the Fifth Circuit’s ruling.
Another source of HISA oversight is the Cincinnati-based Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, which is reviewing an appeal against a ruling that HISA is constitutional brought by Judge Joseph Hood in the United States District Court. Eastern Kentucky of the United States. Oral debate is set for December 7.
Hood found that the HISA law gives the FTC sufficient “authority and oversight” over the Agency to ensure that the FTC operates as a private entity under the FTC and not vice versa in the construction process. Rule. Basically, Hendrix made the same kind of judgment as Hood. The fifth lap said Congress had won the chariot over the horse, making HISA an entity with a “whip handle”.
If the Sixth Circuit sided with Hood and if the Fifth Circuit did not change its position, the conflicting rulings would create a classic situation in which two appeals courts circle with differing results on the same issue. a legal issue that would put the U.S. Supreme Court in a position to, essentially, break the tie.
Other scenarios are possible. Both circuits can ultimately rule the same way. The Supreme Court may or may not consider those results.
Although these issues are brought to court, it is possible that the permissive law could be revisited to correct deficiencies identified by the Fifth Circle’s interpretation of the law. While some may find that choice unlikely in a divided Congress, the original legislation has received support from both sides.
The saying that politics make weird bedmates could never be more true than in this case, as evidenced by the different political backgrounds of some of the players.
Hendrix was nominated to his seat by former President Donald Trump in Texas district court and confirmed by the Senate. Previously, Hendrix was also nominated by former President Barack Obama, but the nomination stalled on the committee. The decision to repeal HISA was made by a conservative, Judge Stuart Kyle Duncan, Trump’s nominee to the court. HISA was passed by the US House of Representatives and Senate with support from both political camps and signed into law by Trump.
Overall, the Fifth Circuit, which is based in New Orleans, has a conservative structure if viewed through the lens of the presidents who nominated them before they were confirmed by the US Senate.
The court’s website lists 25 sitting judges, nine of them senior. Senior justices retain the same rights and privileges as other judges if they handle at least 25% of the cases.
Of the 16 non-senior judges, two were nominated by Ronald Reagan, two by Bill Clinton, four by George W. Bush, two by Obama and six by Trump. Of the nine senior justices, Jimmy Carter nominated one, Reagan four, George HW Bush two, Clinton one and George W. Bush one. It is not clear to what extent senior judges are involved in en banc decisions.
Regardless of where HISA stands after all has been said and done, there are plenty of twists, turns, and outcomes that could come in the coming months.
