Supreme Court unlikely to hear DACA case this term

The Supreme Court has not announced whether it will be reviewing the Trump Administration’s termination of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), which means it probably will not consider the case this term. The Court could still accept the case for review and place it on the docket for the fall.

Please note that this update is from the first Trump administration in 2019. There are currently no updates regarding the status of DACA in 2025.

Key points:

• The Department of Homeland Security is currently required by federal court order to continue accepting DACA renewal applications only. The agency is not accepting new applications.
• The current status of the DACA program will remain in place while the litigation proceeds.

Background: The Trump administration ended the DACA program in December 2017 with a delayed termination date of Mar. 5, 2018, claiming the Obama-era program was unconstitutional. Meanwhile, lawsuits are pending in lower courts that allege that the decision to end DACA was unconstitutional and in violation of the Administrative Procedure Act. Another case, which Texas and several other states filed, sought to immediately terminate DACA. In November 2018, the Trump administration requested Supreme Court review.

BAL Analysis: The Supreme Court neither granted nor denied the request for review of the case. Given the Court’s typical timelines, the earliest the Supreme Court could take the case is next term, which begins Oct. 7. For the time being, DHS will continue to accept renewal DACA applications, but not new DACA applications while the litigation proceeds. Congress could also pass a legislative measure reinstating the program.

This alert has been provided by the BAL U.S. Practice group. For additional information, please contact berryapplemanleiden@bal.com.

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