Last night, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the Temporary Restraining Order against one of the President’s Executive Orders. At issue in this emergency proceeding was Executive Order 13769, “Protecting the Nation From Foreign Terrorist Entry Into the United States.”

This is an important ruling for the following reasons:

1. It ends, for now, the Executive Order of January 27, 2017, that banned people from Iraq, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen from entering the United States.
2. It ends the 120 days hold on refugee processing.
3. It ends the suspension of admitting Syrian refugees.

The Court made several key rulings about the case:

1. The State of Washington had the power to file the lawsuit on behalf of the State’s students and faculty.
2. The Courts have the power to review executive orders, even if they are related to issues of national security.
3. Washington State is likely to win, on its claim that the Executive Order violated the right to due process because, among other things, there was no advance notice and no chance to respond to the proposed change.
4. There may also be a claim of religious discrimination.

The bottom line is that as of now, this particular Executive Order will be on hold for a long time, and most likely permanently.