Oral arguments set for Nov. 21 in Harper-Otsuka legal challenge

The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals set Nov. 21 for oral arguments in the lawsuit filed by dismissed NCUA board members Todd Harper and Tanya Otsuka. The arguments will begin one day after the agency’s scheduled November board meeting, with the final meeting of 2025 scheduled for Dec. 18.

Harper and Otsuka were dismissed April 16 by President Donald Trump, and filed a lawsuit seeking reinstatement shortly after. The two were reinstated long enough to attend the agency’s July board meeting, but a judge ruled the day after the two must remain off the board until the appeals process continues.  

The dismissed board members claim their removal is unlawful and contrary to congressional intent. The Department of Justice—on behalf of the administration and NCUA—maintains that Congress must use explicit language to restrict the president’s authority to remove executive officers, and no such language exists in the statute governing the NCUA.

The government filed its latest brief last week, with Harper and Otsuka’s reply due Oct. 3, and the government’s reply to them due Oct. 17.

America’s Credit Unions supports a strong, independent NCUA with a full, three-member board, and is monitoring the legal proceedings.