A federal appeals court on Friday cleared the way for construction on President Trump’s proposed ballroom to continue into early June, temporarily halting a lower court order that would have forced work to stop next week.

The ruling was procedural rather than final. 

By issuing an administrative stay, the court effectively bought itself several weeks to review the case in greater depth.

The same three-judge panel from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit had taken a cautious approach just days earlier. Instead of immediately weighing in, it sent the case back to Federal District Judge Richard J. Leon, asking him to better define key aspects of the dispute. 

The move followed weeks of public statements from Trump, who has argued that the ballroom project also involves significant national security enhancements to the White House.