Rebecca Kelly Slaughter

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Rebecca Kelly Slaughter
Commissioner of the Federal Trade Commission
In office
May 2, 2018 – September 8, 2025
Disputed: March 18, 2025 – September 8, 2025[a]
PresidentDonald Trump
Joe Biden
Preceded byEdith Ramirez
Succeeded byTBD
Chair of the Federal Trade Commission
Acting
January 21, 2021 – June 15, 2021
PresidentJoe Biden
Preceded byJoseph Simons
Succeeded byLina Khan
Personal details
BornRebecca Joy Kelly
(1981-08-06) August 6, 1981 (age 44)
New York City, New York, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
EducationYale University (BA, JD)

Rebecca Joy Kelly Slaughter (née Kelly; born August 6, 1981) is an American attorney who served as a commissioner of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) from 2018 until her firing in 2025. Following litigation over her firing by President Trump, her removal was upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court while they hear the case, which is scheduled in December 2025.[1][2][3][4] A member of the Democratic Party, she served as acting chair of the Federal Trade Commission from January to June 2021.[5]

Early life and education

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Slaughter was born Rebecca Joy Kelly on August 6, 1981, in New York City.[6] She graduated from Yale University in 2003 with a Bachelor of Arts. Slaughter spent a year as a paralegal in the Manhattan District Attorney's Office before attending Yale Law School, where she was an editor of The Yale Law Journal.[6] She graduated in 2008 with a Juris Doctor degree.[6]

Career

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Slaughter was an associate in the Washington, D.C. office of Sidley Austin before entering federal service.[7] She served as a longtime policy counsel to Senator Chuck Schumer of New York before accepting the appointment to a Democratic seat on the Federal Trade Commission in 2018, during the presidency of Donald Trump.[8] In this capacity, she filled the seat left vacant by Edith Ramirez.[9]

Slaughter was nominated by President Joe Biden for a second term as commissioner on February 13, 2023.[10] Shortly after her appointment to the seat, she gave birth to her third child, making her the first woman to give birth while serving on the FTC.[8] Slaughter was considered for the role of permanent agency chair under President Biden, but the position instead went to Lina Khan.[11]

Removal

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Main article: Trump v. Slaughter

Slaughter was fired by President Donald Trump on March 18, 2025 along with the other Democratic commissioner Alvaro Bedoya, in violation of the precedent set by Humphrey's Executor v. United States.[1][12] Slaughter stated: "The President illegally fired me from my position as a Federal Trade Commissioner, violating the plain language of a statute and clear Supreme Court precedent".[1]

On July 17, 2025, Slaughter was reinstated to her position by Judge Loren AliKhan of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia.[2][13] On July 22, that decision was temporarily stayed by the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.[14] On September 2, the court of appeals allowed the district court's decision to take effect, ruling in a 2-1 decision that a president may not fire an FTC commissioner without cause.[15] On September 8, the U.S. Supreme Court temporarily stayed the lower court's decision, following a September 4 request from the Trump administration asking that he be permitted to remove the commissioner.[16][17]

Personal life

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Slaughter lives in Maryland with her husband, Justin Slaughter. They have four children.[7][18]

Notes

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  1. ^ On March 18, 2025, President Trump attempted to fire Slaughter. On September 8th, SCOTUS allowed the removal to stand until they make a final ruling in December (Trump v. Slaughter).

References

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  1. ^ a b c Godoy, Jody (March 19, 2025). "Trump fires both Democratic commissioners at FTC". Reuters. Retrieved March 18, 2025.
  2. ^ a b Ng, Alfred (July 17, 2025). "Judge says Trump's firing of FTC commissioner was illegal". Politico. Retrieved July 17, 2025.
  3. ^ "US supreme court allows Trump to remove Democrat from FTC post for now". The Guardian. September 8, 2025. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved September 22, 2025.
  4. ^ Kruzel, John (September 22, 2025). "US Supreme Court lets Trump fire FTC member, takes up arguments". Reuters. Retrieved September 22, 2025.
  5. ^ "U.S. FTC names Rebecca Slaughter acting chair of the agency". Reuters. January 21, 2021. Retrieved January 23, 2021.
  6. ^ a b c "U.S. Senate Commerce Committee Questionnaire for Nominees".
  7. ^ a b "Rebecca Kelly Slaughter, biography". Federal Trade Commission. April 30, 2018. Retrieved May 23, 2022.
  8. ^ a b Kang, Cecilia (June 12, 2018). "As both new mom and new FTC commissioner, she's just 'trying to navigate the two'". The New York Times. Retrieved April 2, 2021 – via Seattle Times.
  9. ^ "PN1765 - Nomination of Rebecca Kelly Slaughter for Federal Trade Commission, 115th Congress (2017-2018)". Congress.gov. April 26, 2018. Retrieved September 13, 2021.
  10. ^ "President Biden announces key nominees". White House. February 13, 2021. Retrieved March 7, 2023.
  11. ^ Lapowsky, Issie (January 20, 2021). "This is the future of the FTC". Protocol.com. Retrieved August 20, 2021.
  12. ^ Jeong, Sarah (March 20, 2025). "We ran the wrong headline about Trump firing the FTC commissioners". The Verge. Retrieved March 22, 2025.
  13. ^ "District Court Decision" (PDF). July 17, 2025. Retrieved July 17, 2025.
  14. ^ Scarcella, Mike; Shepardson, David (July 22, 2025). "US appeals court temporarily blocks order reinstating FTC commissioner". Reuters. Retrieved July 27, 2025.
  15. ^ "US appeals court reinstates FTC commissioner fired by Trump". The Guardian. Reuters. September 2, 2025. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
  16. ^ "US supreme court allows Trump to remove Democrat from FTC post for now". The Guardian. Reuters. September 8, 2025. Retrieved September 8, 2025.
  17. ^ "DoJ asks supreme court to let Trump remove Democratic FTC commissioner". The Guardian. September 4, 2025. Retrieved September 4, 2025.
  18. ^ "Rebecca Kelly, Justin Slaughter married". New York Times. March 25, 2011. Retrieved May 23, 2022.
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