The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit held that President Biden did not violate the law by removing Trump-era NLRB General Counsel Peter Robb and replacing him with Peter Ohr at the beginning of the Administration. Robb’s firing has also been upheld at the Fifth and Ninth Circuits. In the Sixth Circuit case, Rieth-Riley Construction Company contested Biden’s January 2021 removal of Robb—who had 10 months remaining in his four-year term—after Ohr issued unfair labor practice complaints against the Michigan-based construction company. Rieth-Riley argued that Robb’s removal was invalid, so the complaint from Ohr was also unlawful. The appeals court concluded that the U.S. Constitution gives the president the authority to remove those who assist him in carrying out his duties, and Biden’s “removal power of an executive officer is generally plenary.” The court also said the National Labor Relations Act supported this conclusion.
