U.S. register of copyrights Shira Perlmutter, who has been fighting to keep her job after being targeted for removal by the Trump administration, has been denied an injunction pending appeal. U.S. District Court Judge Timothy J. Kelly of the District of Columbia, who previously turned down Perlmutter’s requests for a temporary restraining order and a preliminary injunction, ruled against Perlmutter for a third time on August 20.
Among the defendants in the case are U.S. deputy attorney general Todd Blanche, who claims to be the acting librarian of Congress; associate deputy attorney general Paul Perkins, who claims to be the register of copyrights; and members of the White House Presidential Personnel Office.
“Because she has again failed to show that she will be irreparably harmed absent her requested relief, the Court will deny her motion,” Judge Kelly wrote in a memorandum. “She presents the same three irreparable-harm arguments the Court has already considered and rejected twice.” He noted that in government personnel cases, preliminary injunctions are “permitted only in a ‘genuinely extraordinary situation,’” and he agreed with the defense that Perlmutter’s case did not meet that standard.
The judge did not accept that irreparable harm would result from Perlmutter’s loss of her “statutory right to function,” her “temporary inability to discharge her statutory duties,” or her fears of “alleged harms to the Library [of Congress] or Copyright Office.” He ruled that harms to third parties in the case of her removal were “speculative at best,” indicating his expectation that the Copyright Office, a department of the LOC with approximately 450 employees, could fulfill its role without her.
By working to remove Perlmutter, the executive branch is asserting power over a key component of the legislative branch, whose director is appointed by the librarian of Congress. The Copyright Office serves as an impartial federal resource on domestic and international copyright matters. Headed by the Register of Copyrights, the office conducts research, develops regulations, and advises Congress on matters including licensing and intellectual property.
Last week, the defendants and plaintiffs filed responses to Perlmutter’s emergency motion for an injunction pending appeal. On August 15, the copyright chief’s attorneys wrote that the Trump administration’s intent to remove Perlmutter, announced on May 10, coincided with the Copyright Office’s May 9 release of a study on generative AI training and policies. On July 23, the administration launched “America's AI Action Plan,” with implications for the future of AI, IP, and copyright law.
