Supreme Court overrules 40-year-old Chevron precedent that protected environment, consumers
WASHINGTON, DC — THE U.S. SUPREME COURT ON FRIDAY OVERTURNED a 1984 ruling, the Chevron decision, that had facilitated the federal government’s regulation of the environment, public health, workplace safety and consumer protections, reports the Associated Press. The 1984 case, Chevron U.S.A. Inc. v. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc., was an environment-focused case that gave federal regulators the statutory authority to complete the blanks when the laws lacked clarity. Opponents of the Chevron decision asserted that judges, not federal experts, should have the power to codify such laws.
The current Supreme Court justices voted along ideological lines in the case LOPER BRIGHT ENTERPRISES ET AL. v. RAIMONDO, SECRETARY OF COMMERCE, ET AL., in which they were asked to either clarify or overturn the Chevron decision in what consumer protection advocates say places businesses ahead of everyday Americans. In the 1984 case, Associate Justice John Paul Stevens wrote for the majority that “judges are not experts in the field, and are not part of either political branch of government” and explained they should play a limited role. Three judges, William Rehnquist, Thurgood Marshall and Sandra Day O’Connor, had recused themselves.
Associate Justice Elena Kagan, writing for the dissent, summarized the concept of stare decisis as a “ ‘doctrine of judicial modesty… in that it shares something important with Chevron. Both tell judges that they do not know everything and would do well to attend to the views of others. Today, the majority rejects what judicial humility counsels not once but twice over.”
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