Emergency application

Frozen foreign aid payments

Department of State v. AIDS Vaccine Advocacy Coalition

Denied

No. 24A831Vacatur applicationFiled by the federal governmentPresented to The Chief JusticeFrom United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit

What did the Court do?

The Court denied the request on March 5, 2025, leaving the lower-court order in place.

Emergency rulings are temporary and do not decide the underlying case. Justice Alito, Justice Thomas, Justice Gorsuch, and Justice Kavanaugh would have ruled the other way.

Filed February 26, 2025Ruled March 5, 20257 days after filing

What's being asked

The federal government asked the Supreme Court to wipe out (vacate) a District Court order requiring payment for work already completed. The broader dispute concerns the government's pause of foreign development aid payments to businesses and nonprofit groups.

What the Court did

The Court refused emergency help and denied (turned down) the government's request to wipe out the payment order. It wiped out (vacated) the Chief Justice's earlier pause and said the District Court should clarify payment duties, considering feasible deadlines. It did not decide the underlying dispute; Justices Thomas, Gorsuch, and Kavanaugh dissented (disagreed), and the order gives no full vote tally.

Dissented
Vote not published

Dissenting · 3recorded against the Court's order: Thomas
Gorsuch
Kavanaugh
Vote not published · 6the order does not say how they voted: Roberts
Alito
Sotomayor
Kagan
Barrett
Jackson

The order records the positions of 3 of 9 justices. The Court usually does not say how each justice voted on an emergency application, so the rest are shown as not published.

Half of 82 rulings on applications where the Court asked for a response came 10 to 26 days after filing, and the median was 17 days; this one was ruled on 7 days after filing.

What it means

This emergency ruling is temporary and does not decide who wins the underlying dispute. Proceedings over a preliminary injunction (a temporary court order) continue in the District Court, which should clarify what payments are due and feasible deadlines. No related Supreme Court case to decide the main dispute is listed, and the application was not set for argument.

Sources

Facts on this page come from the Supreme Court docket, orders, and opinions for No. 24A831. The answers restate that record in plain words; explainer copy is written from the record and the filings only.

Checked October 4, 2026

Docket timeline

FiledFeb 26, 2025
Application (24A831) to vacate the order issued by the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, submitted to The Chief Justice.
Application (PDF)Proof of service (PDF)
Administrative stayFeb 26, 2025
Order issued by The Chief Justice: Upon consideration of the application of counsel for the applicants, it is ordered that the February 25, 2025 orders of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, case Nos. 1:25-cv-00400 and 1:25-cv-00402, are hereby stayed pending further order of the undersigned or of the Court. It is further ordered that any response to the application be filed on or before Friday, February 28, 2025, by 12 p.m. (EST).
Docket entryFeb 26, 2025
Letter of applicants Department of State, et al. filed.
Document 1 (PDF)
ResponseFeb 28, 2025
Response to application from respondents AIDS Vaccine Advocacy Coalition, et al. filed.
Response (PDF)Document 2 (PDF)
Docket entryFeb 28, 2025
Brief amicus curiae of Jeremy Bates filed.
Amicus brief (PDF)Document 2 (PDF)Document 3 (PDF)
ReplyMar 3, 2025
Reply of applicants Department of State, et al. filed.
Reply (PDF)Proof of service (PDF)
Referred to the full CourtMar 5, 2025
Application (24A831) referred to the Court.
OrderMar 5, 2025
On February 13, the United States District Court for the District of Columbia entered a temporary restraining order enjoining the Government from enforcing directives pausing disbursements of foreign development assistance funds. The present application does not challenge the Government’s obligation to follow that order. On February 25, the District Court ordered the Government to issue payments for a portion of the paused disbursements—those owed for work already completed before the issuance of the District Court’s temporary restraining order—by 11:59 p.m. on February 26. Several hours before that deadline, the Government filed this application to vacate the District Court’s February 25 order and requested an immediate administrative stay. The Chief Justice entered an administrative stay shortly before the 11:59 p.m. deadline and subsequently referred the application to the Court. The application is denied. Given that the deadline in the challenged order has now passed, and in light of the ongoing preliminary injunction proceedings, the District Court should clarify what obligations the Government must fulfill to ensure compliance with the temporary restraining order, with due regard for the feasibility of any compliance timelines. The order heretofore entered by The Chief Justice is vacated. Justice Alito, joined by Justice Thomas, Justice Gorsuch, and Justice Kavanaugh dissent. (Detached <a href = 'https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/24pdf/24a831_3135.pdf'>Opinion</a>)
7 days after filing
OrderMar 5, 2025
On February 13, the United States District Court for the District of Columbia entered a temporary restraining order enjoining the Government from enforcing directives pausing disbursements of foreign development assistance funds. The present application does not challenge the Government’s obligation to follow that order. On February 25, the District Court ordered the Government to issue payments for a portion of the paused disbursements—those owed for work already completed before the issuance of the District Court’s temporary restraining order—by 11:59 p.m. on February 26. Several hours before that deadline, the Government filed this application to vacate the District Court’s February 25 order and requested an immediate administrative stay. The Chief Justice entered an administrative stay shortly before the 11:59 p.m. deadline and subsequently referred the application to the Court. The application is denied. Given that the deadline in the challenged order has now passed, and in light of the ongoing preliminary injunction proceedings, the District Court should clarify what obligations the Government must fulfill to ensure compliance with the temporary restraining order, with due regard for the feasibility of any compliance timelines. The order heretofore entered by The Chief Justice is vacated. Justice Alito, joined by Justice Thomas, Justice Gorsuch, and Justice Kavanaugh dissent.
7 days after filing
Order (PDF)

The case below

Ruling under review: United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, No. 25-cv-00400
Filings: The application (PDF)