The Corporate Transparency Act (CTA), which had been stalled since a nationwide injunction was imposed in December 2024, remains in limbo despite a Jan. 23 ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court.
The now-lifted nationwide injunction was handed down last month by a lower court judge in Texas Top Cop Shop, Inc., et al. V. Merrick Garland, which effectively prevented the Treasury Department from enforcing the CTA. However, another national injunction instituted by a federal judge earlier this month is still being litigated, meaning enforcement of the CTA is still on hold. Following the Jan. 23 Supreme Court ruling, Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) announced that compliance with the CTA's beneficial ownership information (BOI) reporting requirements is optional while the other injunction remains in place.
"In light of a recent federal court order, reporting companies are not currently required to file beneficial ownership information with FinCEN and are not subject to liability if they fail to do so while the order remains in force," reads a notice on the FinCEN website. "However, reporting companies may continue to voluntarily submit beneficial ownership information reports."
Originally passed into law during the first Trump Administration, the CTA was intended cracks down on anonymous shell companies by requiring certain legal entities to provide and register BOI. Despite the legal challenges the CTA has faced in recent months, the act has been widely praised as a crucial tool against money laundering, shell company fraud and other forms of financial malpractice.
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