The Supreme Court has agreed to hear a pivotal case that could reshape the balance of power between the presidency and federal agencies. The case centers on whether President Donald Trump can remove Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Commissioner Rebecca Kelly Slaughter without cause, challenging long-standing legal protections for independent agency officials. In a brief order, the Court permitted Trump to remove Slaughter while the case is pending, with arguments set for December.

At issue is whether statutory restrictions on firing FTC commissioners violate the Constitution’s separation of powers, and whether the Court’s 1935 decision in Humphrey’s Executor v. United States, which upheld such restrictions, should be overturned. The case raises broader concerns about executive authority and the independence of agencies like the FTC.

The Court’s three liberal justices—Elena Kagan, Sonia Sotomayor, and Ketanji Brown Jackson—dissented, warning that allowing removals without cause undermines agency independence. Kagan wrote that the ruling effectively grants presidents unchecked control over agencies Congress intended to insulate from political pressure.

The legal challenge stems from Trump’s attempt to remove Slaughter in March, which lower courts blocked, citing a 1914 law allowing removal only for cause. The Trump administration appealed, and Chief Justice John Roberts temporarily halted the lower court’s decision while the Supreme Court considered the case.

The case follows a pattern of disputes over Trump’s efforts to dismiss Democratic appointees from independent agencies. Recent rulings have increasingly favored presidential authority, prompting calls for the Court to clarify or potentially overturn Humphrey’s Executor.