Joining its sister circuits in the Fourth and Sixth Circuits, the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit upheld the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act. Judge Laurence Silberman, appointed by President Ronald Reagan, and Senior Judge Harry Edwards, appointed by President Jimmy Carter, held that the individual mandate was valid under Congress’s powers.
The lone dissenter, Judge Brett Kavanaugh, did not argue the merits of the case, instead arguing that the case could not be decided until 2014, the first year that the individual mandate – the provision at issue in this case – would actually apply to taxpayers.
The decision from the D.C. Circuit is not part of the appeal working its way to the Supreme Court. However, the D.C. Circuit is among the most respected circuits, and the opinions of the judges on the D.C. Circuit carry great weight.
Young Invincibles submitted an amicus brief in the 4th and 11th circuit our cases in support of reform. Those briefs can be found here and here.