A federal appeals court lifted a lower court’s ruling on Friday blocking the Trump administration from dismantling the U.S. Institute of Peace (USIP).
The U.S. Appeals Court for the District of Columbia Circuit said the president would likely suffer “irreparable” harm from not being able to “fully execute” his executive power over the Institute’s board.
The decision relies on a Supreme Court ruling last month that allowed the president to fire two independent agency leaders as their lawsuits proceed.
“As a general rule, the President may remove executive officers at will. The Supreme Court has recognized a narrow exception for ‘multimember expert agencies that do not wield substantial executive power’ and that exercise ‘quasi-judicial’ or ‘quasi-legislative’ power,” the three-judge panel wrote in the order.
“Because the Institute exercises substantial executive power, the Government is likely to succeed on its claim that the Board’s removal protections are unconstitutional,” they added.
The Institute, a national nonpartisan organization created by Congress, is dedicated to protecting U.S. interests by helping to prevent violent conflicts and broker peace deals abroad, according to their website.
In March, President Trump said he would dissolve the agency and fired five board members after the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) visited their headquarters seeking to gain access to computers and data. A previous executive order targeted the agency over reductions.
Terminated employees sued, arguing their removal was unconstitutional and would require input from Congress. U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell found that their removal was unlawful and alleged Trump officials used “brute force” to take over USIP’s headquarters.
Following the ruling, USIP regained control of the headquarters, CBS News reported, and evaluated software systems before the Friday decision issued by the appeals court.
Updated at 12:52 p.m. EDT
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