Injunctions and Nationwide Injunctions

An injunction is a court order requiring a party to do or stop doing something. Courts may issue a temporary restraining order for a few days and a preliminary injunction that lasts while a case proceeds, if the challenger shows a likelihood of success on the merits, irreparable harm without relief, that the balance of hardships favors relief, and that it serves the public interest, the test restated in Winter v. NRDC in 2008. After a final judgment, a court may issue a permanent injunction.

Injunctions traditionally protected the parties before the court, but from the 1960s onward, and especially since the 2010s, some district judges issued universal or nationwide injunctions barring the government from enforcing a policy against anyone. Their use grew sharply against policies of the Obama, first Trump, and Biden administrations and again in 2025, when dozens were issued against executive actions. Critics in both parties complained that challengers could shop for a sympathetic judge whose single ruling would stop a national policy.

In Trump v. CASA, decided June 27, 2025, the Supreme Court held 6 to 3 that universal injunctions likely exceed the equitable authority Congress gave federal courts in the Judiciary Act of 1789, limiting relief generally to the plaintiffs, while leaving open class actions, relief needed to fully protect states that sue, and vacatur of agency rules under the Administrative Procedure Act. Challengers quickly turned to class actions to seek broad relief. Supporters of the ruling said it restored the proper role of individual judges, while critics said it would let unlawful policies take effect against people who cannot sue.