Berger Montague and Consumer Groups File Amicus Brief Challenging Attempted Removal of FTC Commissioner Rebecca Kelly Slaughter

Berger Montague represented 40 consumer protection, data privacy, and competition groups, alongside the Consumer Federation of America, the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC), Demand Progress Education Fund and the Center for Consumer Law and Economic Justice at UC Berkeley School of Law, in filing an amicus brief in Trump v. Slaughter challenging President Trump’s attempted removal of Federal Trade Commissioner Rebecca Kelly Slaughter. The brief was submitted to the Supreme Court in support of Commissioner Slaughter’s reinstatement and urges the Court to uphold nearly a century of precedent that protects members of independent agencies like the FTC from at‑will presidential removal without cause. It argues that Congress deliberately insulated these agencies to ensure decisions are based on expertise and public safety rather than partisan or industry pressure, and notes that statutory removal restrictions limit presidential removal to instances of "inefficiency, neglect of duty, or malfeasance in office." The brief emphasizes the Supreme Court’s long-standing recognition that FTC decisions derive from the Commissioners’ expertise and "trained judgment." The filing, led by the Consumer Federation of America, EPIC, Demand Progress Education Fund, the Center for Consumer Law and Economic Justice at UC Berkeley School of Law, and Berger Montague, contends that removal protections have preserved expert-driven policymaking on matters ranging from tobacco warnings to data privacy and have insulated the agency from political interference and corporate corruption. The brief warns that overturning these protections would expose independent agencies—more than two dozen of which protect American consumers and markets—to political manipulation, risking corporate consolidation, price increases, and misuse of consumer data. Berger Montague represented the 40 consumer protection, data privacy, and competition groups that joined the amicus brief, with a team composed by: F. Paul Bland — Shareholder; Julia McGrath — Associate; William H. Fedullo — Associate; Ariana B. Kiener — Associate; Jessica Seigel — Associate; Marit Vike — Associate. Berger Montague is a national plaintiffs’ firm focusing on complex civil litigation, class actions and mass torts, with practice areas that include antitrust, consumer protection, defective products, environmental law, employment, securities and whistleblower cases.

Berger Montague and Consumer Groups File Amicus Brief Challenging Attempted Removal of FTC Commissioner Rebecca Kelly Slaughter

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