The US Supreme Court on Monday blocked President Donald Trump from immediately removing Lisa Cook from the Federal Reserve Board, ruling that the administration failed to follow the legal procedures required for her dismissal.

In a closely divided 5-4 decision, the court held that the president cannot remove officials of the independent Federal Reserve “for any reason or no reason,” delivering a setback to Trump’s broad interpretation of presidential authority.

The ruling reinforces the independence of the US central bank, whose governors are nominated by the president and confirmed by the Senate to oversee monetary policy for the world’s largest economy.

Trump had sought to dismiss Cook over allegations that she made false statements on mortgage documents by claiming two separate primary residences—one in Michigan and another in Georgia.

The president argued that the allegations constituted sufficient grounds for her removal.

However, the Supreme Court ruled that while a president may remove a Federal Reserve governor “for cause,” the administration failed to provide Cook with the procedural protections required under federal law before attempting to terminate her appointment.

Cook has denied any wrongdoing.

During the court proceedings, her legal team argued that any discrepancies in the mortgage documents amounted, at most, to an inadvertent error rather than deliberate misconduct.

Cook, the first Black woman to serve on the Federal Reserve’s Board of Governors, has remained at the centre of a high-profile legal and political dispute over the limits of presidential authority.

Trump has repeatedly criticised the Federal Reserve in recent months, urging the central bank to cut interest rates to stimulate economic growth. His attempt to remove Cook marked the first effort by a US president to dismiss a Federal Reserve governor in the institution’s 111-year history.

The Supreme Court’s decision leaves Cook in office while the legal dispute over her dismissal continues.