More than 32 million businesses have been at the whim of the U.S. justice system as multiple court decisions made in recent weeks have repeatedly changed if they’d be required to follow a Corporate Transparency Act January deadline. 

The most recent, made by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, reinstated an injunction, barring enforcement of a January deadline for businesses to file a corporate transparency report with beneficial ownership information (BOI) with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN). 

Businesses that missed the deadline faced up to two years imprisonment, fines and up to $10,000, and civil penalties of up to $591 per day. 

The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas issued the injunction earlier this month in the case, Texas Top Cop Shop, Inc., et al. v. Merrick Garland, Attorney General of the United States, et al. The case questions the constitutionality of the CTA, which is meant to expose criminal activity by removing corporate anonymity.

The Fifth Circuit, located in New Orleans, originally reversed the injunction two days before Christmas and stated in its order the government made a strong showing that it was likely to succeed on the merits in defending the CTA’s constitutionality. 

In response to the Fifth Circuit’s decision, FinCEN issued a notice extending the deadline for filing to Jan. 13. 

Just days after the Fifth Circuit made the decision to reverse the injunction, it vacated the decision. The court’s order explains that its original order expedited the appeal to the next available oral argument panel. 

“The merits panel now has the appeal, which remains expedited, and a briefing schedule will issue forthwith,” the order says. “However, in order to preserve the constitutional status quo while the merits panel considers the parties’ weighty substantive arguments, that part of the motions-panel order granting the Government’s motion to stay the district court’s preliminary injunction enjoining enforcement of the CTA and the Reporting Rule is VACATED.”

An email from the S Corporation Association says the panel is set to start hearing arguments March 25.  

“So absent the federal government appealing yesterday’s decision to the Supreme Court — and SCOTUS intervening in the case — the injunction will stay in place through the end of March 2025, at the earliest,” the email says. “In other words, yesterday’s order means covered entities do not need to file their Beneficial Ownership Information reports prior to that proceeding.”

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