The Register of Copyrights’ Firing and Lawsuit

By Olivia Turowski

In May 2025, just five months after the inauguration of 47th United States President Donald J. Trump, the Register of Copyrights Shira Perlmutter was fired by the Trump administration. In response, Perlmutter filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration, claiming that a Register of Copyrights can only be removed or appointed by the Librarian of Congress and not by the president, due to the Library of Congress being a part of the legislative branch. Interestingly, Carla Hayden, the Librarian of Congress who appointed Perlmutter in 2020, was fired and temporarily replaced by Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche just two days before Perlmutter’s position was terminated. [1] Department of Justice official Paul Perkins was temporarily placed into Perlmutter’s former position.

The Justice Department lawyers representing Blanche stated in a court filing that the Library of Congress is subject to presidential powers due to it being part of the Executive Branch and that Blanche was appointed to his temporary position under the lawful Federal Vacancies Reform Act (FVRA). [2] FVRA established requirements for those temporarily filing positions appointed by the president or by Senate confirmation in Executive Branch agencies. [3] This reasoning has been questioned by multiple members of Congress, with some, such as Rep. Joe Morelle (D-N.Y), who stated that the Library of Congress is a part of the legislative branch, therefore the president has no authority to appoint members.

On May 28th, Perlmutter's motion to the court to issue a temporary restraining order keeping Trump appointees out of the Library of Congress was shot down by U.S. District Judge Timothy J. Kelly. However, Judge Kelly continued to hear arguments for whether to grant the injunction against Trump and Blanche. On July 30th, the judgment ended with Judge Kelly denying Perlmutter’s preliminary injunction and ruling that she had failed to demonstrate irreparable harm, either concerning her ability to once again become Register of Copyrights or concerning the state of functioning of the Copyright Office. [4]

Perlmutter filed a notice of appeal to the D.C. Circuit Court shortly after the decision. Recent court developments in early September have led to Perlmutter’s position being temporarily reinstated by the U.S. Court of Appeals. While the case continues, the White House and Trump appointees working within the Library of Congress have been prevented from blocking Perlmutter’s position as Register of Copyrights. [5]

This case has polarized lawmakers on Capitol Hill, moving away from disagreement over political differences and leaning towards discussions concerning the legality of the Trump administration's actions. The outcome of the case will be interesting, especially with the recent government shutdown and how the shutdown will eventually affect the federal court system, with funds only being able to stretch operations for the Judiciary until the 17th of October. [6]

References

[1] Andrew Limbong, Fired Copyright Office head sues Trump administration over removal, NPR (May 23rd, 2025), https://www.npr.org/2025/05/23/nx-s1-5408982/register-of-copyrights-lawsuit-trump

[2] Katherine Tully-McManus, Fired copyright chief loses first round in lawsuit over Trump powers, Politico (May 28th, 2025), https://www.politico.com/news/2025/05/28/fired-copyright-chief-first-round-lawsuit-trump-00373611

[3] U.S. Government Accountability Office, FAQs on the Vacancies Act, GAO (n.d.), https://www.gao.gov/legal/federal-vacancies-reform-act/faqs-on-the-vacancies-act

[4] Scott Shuchart, Brian Chen, Jinan Abufarha, Case: Perlmutter v. Blanche, Civil Rights Litigation Clearing House (September 20th, 2025), https://clearinghouse.net/case/46635/

[5] Eileen McDermott, D.C. Circuit Says Perlmutter Can Resume Register Role Pending Lawsuit Against Trump, IPWatchdog (September 10th, 2025), https://ipwatchdog.com/2025/09/10/dc-circuit-perlmutter-resume-register-role-pending-lawsuit-trump/id=192106/

[6] United States Courts, Judiciary Still Operating as Shutdown Starts, USCourts (October 1st, 2025), https://www.uscourts.gov/data-news/judiciary-news/2025/10/01/judiciary-still-operating-shutdown-starts