On June 27, 2025, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Trump v. Casa that lower federal courts can no longer issue orders that block federal policies across the entire country, unless the case is a certified class action. These types of sweeping rulings, called nationwide or “universal” injunctions, were being used by activists to stop federal laws or executive orders by filing lawsuits in favorable courts.

Justice Amy Coney Barrett, writing for the 6–3 majority, said this kind of power was never given to federal courts under the Constitution or early U.S. law. Courts should only decide cases for the people involved—not the whole country, unless a group of people is officially represented as a class.

This ruling puts an end to a legal tactic known as “forum shopping,” where political groups file lawsuits in specific courts they think will side with them in order to stop national policies.

Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson disagreed, warning that this limits people’s ability to stop the government from violating the Constitution. But the Court’s majority said that protecting the balance of powers means not letting courts overstep their role.

This decision will change how future legal challenges to federal policies are handled and strengthens the limits on judicial power.