A federal judge in Maryland delivered a major blow to the Trump administration on Thursday evening by ordering the reinstatement of tens of thousands of recently terminated federal workers. The sweeping temporary restraining order also prohibits further unlawful mass firings, marking the second such judicial intervention that day.
The 56-page ruling, issued by U.S. District Judge James Bredar, addresses layoffs across 18 federal agencies, including the Departments of Agriculture, Education, and Homeland Security. Judge Bredar criticized the administration’s claim that the terminations were based on individual performance or other personalized reasons, stating that the mass firings were a clear violation of federal rules governing “reductions in force” (RIFs).
“In this case, the government conducted massive layoffs, but it gave no advance notice,” Bredar wrote. “It claims it wasn’t required to because, it says, it dismissed each one of these thousands of probationary employees for ‘performance’ or other individualized reasons. On the record before the Court, this isn’t true.”
The ruling stems from a lawsuit brought by 19 Democratic state attorneys general and Washington, D.C. They argued that the Trump administration failed to comply with the Administrative Procedures Act, which mandates at least 60 days’ notice for mass terminations. The plaintiffs highlighted the economic impact on their states, which were suddenly left grappling with the influx of about 24,000 unemployed individuals.
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Judge Bredar’s decision labeled the layoffs as part of an “illegal scheme” and stressed that the administration’s actions skirted statutory requirements. “There were no individualized assessments of employees. They were all just fired. Collectively,” he emphasized.
The Department of Justice contended that the states lacked standing to sue, arguing that they were unaffected third parties whose claims were speculative. DOJ lawyers also claimed that the administration had the authority to terminate probationary employees without the firings constituting a formal RIF. However, Bredar dismissed these arguments, highlighting the implausibility of individualized performance reviews for the 24,000 affected employees in such a short timeframe.
“The sheer number of employees that were terminated in a matter of days belies any argument that these terminations were due to the employees’ individual unsatisfactory performance or conduct,” Bredar wrote. “The Government’s contention to the contrary borders on the frivolous.”
Earlier the same day, California-based District Judge William Alsup issued a similar ruling, calling the firings “unlawful” and accusing the administration of fabricating performance-related justifications for the layoffs. Judge Alsup ordered the immediate rehiring of the terminated employees, lamenting the dishonesty underlying the dismissals.
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Judge Bredar acknowledged the logistical burden of rehiring thousands of workers but laid responsibility squarely on the Trump administration. “When, as is likely the case here, the Government has engaged in an illegal scheme spanning broad swaths of the federal workforce, it is inevitable that the remediation of that scheme will itself be a significant task,” he concluded.
Both rulings stand as significant obstacles to the Trump administration’s aggressive push to overhaul the federal workforce, underscoring the judiciary’s role in upholding legal protections for government employees.
