The US Supreme Court just handed federal regulators two major wins on the same day. On June 4, the Court affirmed both the FCC’s power to impose civil forfeiture penalties and the SEC’s ability to claw back profits from wrongdoers, even without proving that investors actually lost money.
What the Court actually decided
The first case, FCC v. AT&T, Inc. (No. 25-406), came down 8-1. At its core, AT&T argued that the FCC’s two-stage process for imposing civil forfeiture penalties, where the agency first determines a violation administratively and then enforces the penalty through federal court, violates the Seventh Amendment right to a jury trial.
The Court disagreed. The majority held that because judicial enforcement remains available in federal courts when needed, the mechanism passes constitutional muster.
The ruling also resolved a circuit split that had been creating regulatory chaos. The Fifth Circuit had sided with carriers challenging the FCC’s authority, while the Second and D.C. Circuits had upheld it. That disagreement, involving major carriers like AT&T and Verizon, is now settled.
