Labor Board’s Top Lawyer Is Doubtful That Removal Shield Applies

The National Labor Relations Board may not fall under a 90-year-old US Supreme Court precedent shielding independent panel members from being fired by the president, its acting general counsel said.

William Cowen seemed doubtful that any current government agency should be covered by the high court’s 1935 decision in Humphrey’s Executor v. United States, in remarks Monday at a labor and employment law conference at New York University. The decision endorsed Congress’ ability to place restrictions on presidential firing power for independent agencies.

“Humphrey’s talks about an agency that doesn’t execute any serious executive power, is multi-membered, and ...