US Judge Grants Preliminary Injunction Blocking Trump's Puerto Rico Board Firings

"Since Plaintiffs were never properly removed from office, the Motion for a Preliminary Injunction is granted," U.S. District Judge Maria Antongiorgi-Jordan of the District of Puerto Rico wrote in an order blocking President Donald Trump's attempted removal of three board members who oversee Puerto Rico's financial management.

What You Need to Know

• U.S. District Judge Maria Antongiorgi-Jordan of the District of Puerto Rico blocked President Donald Trump from firing three Puerto Rico oversight board members as their lawsuit plays out.
• Cooley, Democracy Defenders Fund and the Washington Litigation Group represent the plaintiffs as co-counsel.
• The plaintiffs serve on the Financial Oversight and Management Board for Puerto Rico, which exercises no federal executive power.

A U.S. District Judge in Puerto Rico has granted a preliminary injunction that temporarily blocks Donald Trump from removing three members of the Financial Oversight and Management Board for Puerto Rico (FOMB). In her ruling, U.S. District Judge María Antongiorgi-Jordán found that Trump likely violated federal law and constitutional due process rights because the board members were fired without cause. 
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Background on the case

• The firings: In August 2025, the Trump administration fired five of the seven FOMB members, then dismissed a sixth member a few weeks later. The administration initially provided no rationale for the dismissals.
• The board: Established by Congress in 2016 under the Puerto Rico Oversight, Management, and Economic Stability Act (PROMESA), the FOMB is responsible for restructuring Puerto Rico's debt and helping it achieve fiscal responsibility. PROMESA requires that board members can only be removed "for cause".
• The lawsuit: The three members who sued to block their removal—Arthur González, Andrew Biggs, and Betty Rosa—argued that their firings without cause violated PROMESA.
• Justification provided later: After the lawsuit was filed, the White House later claimed the board members were removed for "inefficiency, ineffectiveness, neglect, and failure to advance the statutory mission of the Oversight Board".
• Judge's decision: Judge Antongiorgi-Jordán ruled that the belated explanation was insufficient, finding the initial termination notices "fundamentally defective" because they lacked any stated cause and failed to provide the members an opportunity to defend themselves.              

Impact of the injunction

• Members restored: The preliminary injunction effectively restores the three plaintiffs to their positions on the oversight board while the lawsuit proceeds.
• Resumes debt restructuring: The firings had created a serious disruption, stalling key negotiations, particularly with respect to restructuring the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority's (PREPA) $12 billion debt. The injunction allows this process to move forward.
• Political implications: This case is one of several legal challenges during the Trump administration's second term involving the limits of presidential power, with potential implications for independent federal agencies.