Court Probes Federal Preemption in Test of Florida Property Ban

An appeals court panel’s consideration of the legality of Florida legislation restricting property purchases by Chinese immigrants focused on its potential clash with federal law and whether the plaintiffs had standing to sue.

During oral arguments over the law (SB 264) at the US Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit on Friday, Judge Charles R. Wilson, a Clinton appointee, asked whether Florida was arguing that every state could adopt its own restrictions on foreign property investment.

Plaintiffs, including H-1B specialty occupation visa holders, say the law interferes with the president’s ability to set foreign policy and discriminates ...