Third Travel Ban Wins and Loses Emergency Appeal

In the latest chapter in the Trump travel ban saga, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has partially lifted the preliminary injunction issued by the federal district court in Hawaii. After Judge Watson issued the order, the feds appealed and filed for an emergency appeal regarding the preliminary injunction shutting down the travel ban as to the six Muslim majority nations it named.

The Ninth Circuit limited the preliminary injunction only to those foreign nationals with bona fide ties to the United States. For individuals, this means family members extending out as far as grandparents, grandchildren, aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, cousins, and even siblings-in-law. For businesses, there must be a formal, documented relationship that was not formed for the purpose of evading the travel ban.

What's Next?

The Ninth Circuit will hear the arguments in the actual appeal of Judge Watson's order in a few weeks, around the same time as the Fourth Circuit will be hearing the appeal stemming from the travel ban case out of the federal court in Maryland.

While there may be uncertainty about what will happen with the ban in the end, the appellate courts will likely determine the future of the ban at least for the next several months. It is unlikely that either side of the battle will give in, and as such, it'll keep going until the cases can be appealed up to the Supreme Court, where they'll likely be consolidated, just like the previous travel ban cases.

A spokesperson for the department of justice stated, in response to the Ninth Circuit's order: "We are reviewing the court's order and the government will begin enforcing the travel proclamation consistent with the partial stay. We believe that the [travel ban] proclamation should be allowed to take effect in its entirety."

Related Resources:

• Ninth Circuit Debates DACA Decision Documents Discovery Debacle (FindLaw's U.S. Ninth Circuit Blog)
• Glassdoor Can't Protect Reviewers' Identities From Government (FindLaw's U.S. Ninth Circuit Blog)
• Is RBG 'Bound by Law' to Recuse Herself on Travel Ban Case? (FindLaw's U.S. Supreme Court Blog)