Fifth Cir. Mulls Sending ESG 401(k) Rule Case Back Post-Chevron (1)

A conservative-leaning Fifth Circuit panel wrestled on Tuesday with how to weigh a Biden administration rule aimed at promoting sustainable investing in 401(k) plans, after a legal doctrine used to uphold it was overturned by the US Supreme Court.

US District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, appointed by President Donald Trump to the Northern District of Texas, had leaned on deference given to federal agencies under the Chevron doctrine where statutes are silent or ambiguous when he ruled in September that the US Labor Department acted within its authority in issuing the rule.

But the high court’s June 28 decision in ...