Fired Register of Copyrights Tries Again to Keep Her Job

Just days after a federal judge denied fired register of copyrights Shira Perlmutter's motion for a preliminary injunction reinstating her, lawyers for Perlmutter are trying again, filing an emergency motion this week that asks the court to allow her to keep her job while she appeals the court's denial.

In a narrow July 30 order, federal judge Timothy Kelly held that Perlmutter failed to show that her removal is causing her "irreparable harm," a key requirement for issuing injunctive relief. But in a brief, six-page filing attorneys for Perlmutter argue that the court's decision failed to address the merits of her claim—chiefly, that President Trump lacks the authority to fire her, or to appoint his personal attorney and DOJ deputy director Todd Blanche as the acting Librarian of Congress.

Perlmutter last week notified the court that she is appealing the decision to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Washington D.C.

The litigation began after Perlmutter was axed via email on Saturday, May 10, just days after the shock firing of Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden. On May 22, Perlmutter sued, asking a federal court to block the Trump administration’s attempt to fire her and to replace her with veteran DOJ attorney Paul Perkins.

“On July 30, 2025, this Court denied Plaintiff’s motion for preliminary injunction because it concluded that Plaintiff has not shown irreparable harm,” Perlmutter’s emergency application reads. "But its Memorandum Opinion does not address Plaintiff’s argument on the merits, which leaves no doubt that the President does not have the authority to directly remove Ms. Perlmutter, nor does he have the authority to unilaterally install Todd Blanche as acting Librarian of Congress, who in turn attempted to remove Ms. Perlmutter.”

Perlmutter is seeking the emergency injunction under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 62(d), which, the filing explains, “envisions situations in which a district court that has denied an injunction still grants an injunction pending appeal,” even in situations where the court denying injunctive relief believes its analysis is correct.

In her August 4 motion, lawyers for Perlmutter reiterate several claims that Kelly dismissed in his July 30 opinion, including that she is “irreparably harmed” by not being able to do her job as the “lawful” Register of Copyrights. But the motion also stresses that the administration's efforts to fire her "directly threaten" the Library of Congress and the Copyright Office, including by giving the executive branch "unlawful access to confidential Congressional correspondence and other materials."

Such access would "irreversibly damage the credibility and reliability of the institution as a non-partisan advisor, jeopardize the security of the copyright registration system and the value of the deposited works, place confidential congressional correspondence and work product at risk, and preclude Ms. Perlmutter’s effective return to the institution she is charged with safeguarding," the filing states.

The motion also confirms that the leadership situation at the Library of Congress remains in flux, as “officials and staff at the Library of Congress have not recognized Mr. Blanche as acting Librarian,” and that Perkins “has not returned to the Library of Congress” since he was denied access by staffers on May 12.

“Because Ms. Perlmutter’s unlawful removal is itself a component of the President’s unlawful assault on the institutional independence and integrity of the Library and Copyright Office, it is impossible to assess the irreparable harm and balance of the equities separately from the merits of Ms. Perlmutter’s claims,” Perlmutter argues, adding that the law is unequivocal that the President “does not have the authority to remove Ms. Perlmutter or appoint Mr. Blanche to acting Librarian” and that temporary relief will therefore not “mark a severe intrusion into the President’s authority.”

The motion seeks an order enjoining Blanche from “exercising the powers of acting Librarian of Congress,” and Perkins from taking over as acting Register of Copyrights. Furthermore, it seeks an order stating that Perlmutter cannot be removed from her role “absent a decision by a lawfully appointed Librarian of Congress.”

The emergency motion comes as as the parties were due to file a proposed schedule for next steps in the litigation on August 6. In an August 5 order, however, Kelly has now directed the DOJ to file their opposition to Perlmutter's emergency motion by August 12, with Perlmutter's reply due by August 15, 2025.

But even if Perlmutter is successful, it may not be enough to save her job—at least not for long. Even if Trump is found to lack the authority to fire the register and to appoint an acting Librarian of Congress, he can end the dispute at any moment by appointing a permanent, senate-confirmed Librarian of Congress who could then legally install a new register of copyrights.