NEW ORLEANS — (CNN) A federal appeals court said on Monday night that President Barack Obama’s controversial executive actions on immigration must remain blocked from going into effect.

A 2-1 panel of judges on the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals said that a lower court did not “abuse its discretion” when it said that challengers to the law were likely to succeed in their claim that the programs were unlawful because they didn’t comply with the Administrative Procedure Act, a law that sets forward how federal agencies can establish regulations.

The ruling is a loss for the President who made immigration reform a key second term initiative. The administration is expected to appeal the decision to the Supreme Court, which could hear the matter this term. The timing will depend on whether the Justice Department appeals the decision directly to the Supreme Court.

“Immigrant families and their U.S. Children have been waiting anxiously for the Fifth Circuit to rule, we urge the (Justice Department) to immediately ask the Supreme Court to review this erroneous decision,” said Karen Tumlin, of the National Immigration Law Center.

The challenge was brought by Texas and 25 other states and the opponents of Obama’s executive actions welcomed the decision.

“Today, the Fifth Circuit asserted that the separation of powers remains the law of the land, and the President must follow the rule of law, just like everybody else,” said Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in a statement. “Throughout this process, the Obama administration has aggressively disregarded the constitutional limits on executive power, and Texas, leading a charge of 26 states, has secured an important victory to put a halt to the President’s lawlessness.

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