The Battle for Control Over the US Copyright Office Continues: Register Fired by Trump Forces an Emergency Injunction Battle; Appeals Court Is Next

Shira Perlmutter’s injunction push is heating up: The ex-Register’s emergency injunction motion and distinct injunction-denial appeal are both moving forward.

We provided top-level updates about the developments yesterday, after the presiding judge closed out July by denying the reinstatement-minded Perlmutter’s request for a preliminary injunction.

In explaining the decision, Judge Timothy Kelly indicated in more words that the plaintiff hadn’t demonstrated a likelihood of suffering irreparable harm as a result of her USCO dismissal. And as we noted, the determination didn’t sit right with Perlmutter, who promptly informed the court of plans to appeal.

Back to the latest updates: Said appeal is officially underway and has a case number (25-5285) of its own. However, early evidence is pointing to a potentially plodding legal process. In a new filing, the appellate court ordered Perlmutter to submit a variety of documents and identified a smaller number of required submissions from the defendants/appellees.

Without rattling off each of these documents in the present overview, Perlmutter has until September 4th to provide a “statement of issues to be raised” and much more, the order shows. Additionally, dispositive motions, if any, are due by September 19th. Plus, “briefing in this case [will] be deferred pending further order of the court,” per the same source.

Other details are few and far between at the moment, but it’ll certainly be worth tracking the hail mary attempt at relief in the coming weeks and months.

More immediately, Perlmutter’s emergency motion for injunction pending the above-described appeal is also proceeding. In a concise minute order, Judge Kelly instructed the Trump administration defendants to submit their opposition by next Tuesday, August 12th. From there, Team Perlmutter will have until Friday the 15th to reply, the order shows.

In short, the increasingly convoluted legal battle now involves several moving parts, and an imminent resolution appears unlikely. Closing with a heretofore unmentioned aspect of the courtroom confrontation, it goes without saying that the multifaceted process’s legal bills aren’t cheap.

But Perlmutter is repped by attorneys with Democracy Forward, a non-profit that says it “will continue to meet this administration [the Trump administration, that is] in court to protect our communities and our democracy.”

“Democracy Forward provides legal representation and expert counsel to people and communities who make up the very fabric of American democracy — free of charge,” the relevant website spells out.

Stated differently, however Perlmutter’s complaint unfolds, the ex-Register seems well positioned to pursue long-haul litigation.