Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. | Justin Sullivan/Getty Images legal Injunction against Trump policy lifted in asylum case

A federal appeals court has temporarily lifted a nationwide injunction against President Donald Trump’s effort to deny asylum to immigrants who enter the U.S. after passing through another country.

Acting at the request of the Trump administration, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals issued an administrative stay Tuesday night that put on hold the injunction issued Monday by San Francisco-based U.S. District Court Judge Jon Tigar.


The temporary hold implemented while the appeals court considers a longer stay essentially restores the legal situation that existed prior to this week, with Trump’s policy blocked only in the Ninth Circuit, which includes the border regions of California and Arizona.

That allowed the administration to implement the new policy in New Mexico and Texas, barring rulings from other courts as litigation over the issue ricochets through various courts The Trump administration has asked the Supreme Court to step in on an emergency basis to allow officials to carry out the Trump policy as announced in July. The high court has yet to rule on that request.

Tigar initially blocked the policy nationwide, but a Ninth Circuit panel pared back that injunction to cover only the Ninth Circuit states. The district court judge, an appointee of President Barack Obama, restored the nationwide scope of the injunction on Monday after receiving new evidence from opponents of the policy change.

Trump and Attorney General Bill Barr have railed against Tigar’s rulings, particularly because of their nationwide scope.

