In another twist to the Corporate Transparency Act saga, on December 26, 2024, the full Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals temporarily reinstated the preliminary injunction previously granted by the District Court for the Eastern District Court of Texas, once again suspending the reporting requirements of the Corporate Transparency Act. Only three days earlier, on December 23, 2024, a three-judge motions panel of the same Circuit had lifted the District Court's injunction. The new decision states that the appeal to the "merits panel," which will ultimately determine whether the District Court's injunction will be upheld, will be expedited and a briefing schedule will be published shortly.
As a result of this latest decision, compliance with the reporting requirements of the CTA is once again not required at least until the appeal is decided. After the previous decision, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network ("FinCEN") extended most reporting deadlines to January 13, 2025, but reinstatement of the preliminary injunction suspends all deadlines again.
The confusion brought about by these series of decisions is understandable and unfortunate. Given the uncertainty created by this series of decisions, however, it may be prudent to gather the information needed to meet the reporting requirements of the CTA in case they are reinstated. If the reporting requirements are put back into effect, there is no way to know how long companies will have to file their reports.
FinCEN has not yet posted a response to this latest decision but the response will likely simply indicate compliance with the court decision.
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