Recess Appointment Power: Implications & Analyses of Noel Canning v. NLRB

Under the Appointments Clause, the President is empowered to nominate and appoint principal officers of the United States, but only with the advice and consent of the Senate. In addition to this general appointment authority, the Recess Appointments Clause permits the President to make temporary appointments, without Senate approval, during periods in which the Senate is not in session. This book begins with a general legal overview of the Recess Appointments Clause and a discussion of applicable case law that existed prior to the D.C. Circuit’s decision in Noel Canning. In Noel Canning v. National Labor Relations Board, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit (D.C. Circuit) ruled that President Obama’s appointments of three Members to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) were constitutionally invalid. This book focuses on the ramifications that the Noel Canning decision might have on the President’s authority to make recess appointment by providing a legal analysis of Noel Canning and the applicable case law that existed prior to that decision. The U.S. Constitution explicitly provides the President with two methods of appointing officers of the United States. This book also provides an overview of the Recess Appointments Clause, exploring its historical application and legal interpretation by the executive branch, the courts, and the Comptroller General. It also reflects on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit’s decision in Noel Canning v. Nat'l Labor Relations Board, which held that the President’s three recess appointments to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) were invalid.