DOL Appeals Overtime Rule Injunction with Scant Chance It Will Be Heard

The Department of Labor (DOL) has appealed the Texas federal judge's nationwide injunction blocking the agency's new overtime rule that was set to take effect on Dec. 1. Unless an expedited appeal is granted, which is not done very often, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans won't receive the relevant documents from Texas for a couple of weeks. After that, there is generally a 30-day period for both sides to file briefs, which takes the whole process past the Jan. 20 inauguration of Donald Trump as the next president. The president-elect is not likely to support the appeal. To get an expedited hearing, the DOL must offer a solid reason for the hurry-up, and legal scholars doubt a change of administration would trigger a yes answer from the court.