Much of the discussion around the Supreme Court's recent decision in Trump v. Slaughter, https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/25pdf/25-332_qn12.pdf, has focused on constitutional doctrine.
I keep thinking about the conference room.
As an Assistant Secretary at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, I helped coordinate Commission meetings, including closed meetings. It was my favorite part of the job.
Commissioners asked difficult questions of Division of Enforcement and Office of General Counsel staff. They challenged recommendations. They pressed on the record. They voted based on their understanding of the law, the facts, and the public interest.
That mattered.
The SEC, as an independent agency, makes decisions that affect markets, investors, registrants, whistleblowers, and public confidence. Independence is not just an abstract legal principle. It is also a working condition.
Changes to removal authority have the potential to influence how conversations unfold, how recommendations are developed, and how comfortable decision-makers feel expressing disagreement.
The effects of institutional change often appear first in meeting rooms and deliberations, before they appear in rules, orders, or court opinions.
That is part of what I will be watching.