Puerto Rico and the Oversight Board

The Supreme Court's opinion is out today, and the short answer is that the Board's appointment did not violate the Appointments Clause of the Constitution (Article II, Section 2, Clause 2), and thus the First Circuit is reversed.

But take a look at Justice Sotomayor's concurrence. She is all but inviting the Commonwealth to argue that Congress had no power to enact PROMESA in the first instance, given that it had arguably given up much of its power over Puerto Rico back in the 1950s. It is an argument I had hoped the Court would take up in connection with the Recovery Act.

In short, more interesting legal questions to come (maybe).