Free Speech
Father Free to Send Children to Church Camp During His Parenting Time, Even When Mother Objects to Church's Views on Women
"[A]bsent a clear showing of substantial harm to the child, the noncustodial parent retains his or her fundamental right to direct the child's religious upbringing during his or her parenting time."
D.C. Circuit Seems Disinclined To Let Pete Hegseth Punish a Senator for His Speech
The defense secretary argues that military retirees like Sen. Mark Kelly are not allowed to say things he unilaterally deems "prejudicial to good order and discipline."
Pastor Found Guilty of Violating U.K. Speech Laws for Preaching John 3:16 Sermon Near Hospital
Clive Johnston's conviction marks the first of its kind under buffer zone laws involving speech entirely unrelated to abortion.
Whatever Evidence the DOJ Has Against James Comey, It Cannot Transform '86 47' Into a Death Threat
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche implausibly claims prosecutors can prove Comey "knowingly and willfully" threatened to murder the president.
Restricting Speech By Purportedly Protecting Children
Around the world, governments are censoring speech with the stated goal of shielding youth from online harms.
Trump's Responses to Kimmel and Comey Highlight His Contempt for Freedom of Speech
The president is not shy about using government power to punish people for saying things that offend him.
Why the Courts Will 86 the Flagrantly Unconstitutional Charges Against James Comey
The case defies more than half a century of rulings on the “true threat” exception to the First Amendment.
Elite Panic and the Push to Regulate "Misinformation"
European leaders' warnings of a democratic apocalypse failed to materialize in 2024.
How Bad Facts Make Good First Amendment Law
Jay Near was a hateful man whose litigation set a vital precedent for free speech.
"Gaslighting" Isn't "Abuse" for Child Custody Law Purposes
So holds an Oregon appellate court.
California Can't Define 'Hate Speech' But May Mandate Workplace Training Anyway
The term “hate speech” gets thrown around a lot, but it’s legally protected in the U.S.
"[Anti-Harassment] Injunctions Are Not a Remedy for Interpersonal Conflict"
So reasons a Florida appellate court, though other courts in other states seem to take a different view.
Free Speech Unmuted: "Defamacast" and More: How American Defamation Law Works
Jane and I lay out the structure of American defamation law, using the recent lawsuits brought by FBI Director Kash Patel as a launching point. Special bonus: Almost no discussion of New York Times v. Sullivan (an important case but one that listeners have doubtless heard much about elsewhere).
Bankers Scouring Porn Sites. Payment Processors Punishing Journalists. Here's How 'Big Finance' Is Chilling Speech
Financial censorship should worry us all, suggests Rainey Reitman in Transaction Denied.
"Making Negative Statements" About People to Their Employers = Criminal Harassment
"[S]tatements made to third parties can be 'directed at' the victim," and thus criminal harassment if they're repeated and likely to cause serious annoyance or distress, "when they are designed to provoke an adverse consequence against the victim."
Trump Administration's Review of ABC's Broadcast Licenses Looks Like 'Illegal Jawboning'
When he returned to the White House, Trump vowed to protect free speech from the government. The FCC's latest move against ABC and Disney looks like the opposite.
D.C. Circuit Lets Pentagon Require That Journalists Be Escorted While in Pentagon
The panel (by a 2-1 vote) stayed a district court order that, among other things, blocked the newly established escort requirement.
Judge Reaffirms: EEOC May Subpoena Penn's Records as to "Jewish-Related Organizations" (and Others) in Investigation of Anti-Semitic Harassment at Penn
But the judge suspends his decision pending appeal, so that the appellate court has "time to consider and decide the merits of this case, absent unnecessary procedural deadlines."
Allowing Censorship of Military Retirees Like Sen. Mark Kelly Would Set a Chilling and Dangerous Precedent
To justify punishing a legislator for his speech, a FIRE brief notes, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth relies on a Supreme Court precedent that is clearly inapposite.
Injunction Against Publicly Identifying Pseudonymous Litigants Is Content-Based Prior Restraint,
and thus presumptively a First Amendment violation (though here the presumption was rebutted by national security interests).
Fourth Circuit Upholds Injunction Against Disclosing Names of Perceived Afghan Collaborators
The order came in a peculiar context—a civil lawsuit over the custody of a child born in Afghanistan—but its logic extends further.
FBI Director Kash Patel Loses Defamation Lawsuit Over Morning Joe Statements
The wild things are in the nightclubs.
