The Supreme Court is stepping into a yearslong, politically charged fight over the federal consumer finance watchdog agency that was created in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis.
The justices agreed Friday to review an appeals court decision that upheld the structure of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The agency has long been a target of conservative Republicans.
The Justice Department usually defends federal law. But the Trump administration agrees with a California law firm challenging the CFPB that the president should be able to fire the agency’s director for any reason.
The CFPB was created as an independent agency by the landmark Dodd-Frank law that overhauled the regulations governing Wall Street and banks in response to the financial crisis. The legislation, approved by a Democratic-led Congress and signed into law by President Barack Obama, says the director can only be fired for cause, including neglect of duty and not for political differences.