In separate July rulings, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia spoke to challenges over two rules the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) promulgated under specialized disclosure provisions in the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, vacating one rule and upholding the other.

On July 2, U.S. District Judge John Bates granted a motion for summary judgment by industry groups that had challenged the SEC rule requiring certain companies to publicly disclose payments they make to foreign governments in connection with the commercial development of oil, natural gas or minerals.

Bates assessed the rule's validity under the two-step framework established in the 1984 Supreme Court case Chevron USA Inc. v. Natural Res. Def. Council, Inc. First, the analysis calls for the court to ask whether Congress has directly spoken to the precise question at issue and, if so, whether the rule gives effect to the unambiguously expressed intent of Congress. If the statute is silent or ambiguous as to the specific issue, the court must defer to the agency's interpretation as long as it is based on a permissible construction of the statute.