Civil Liberties
No Suspension Without Hearing in University Student Disciplinary Proceedings
Plus "An accused student's rights must be guaranteed—not left open for interpretation."
Can an Epidemic Justify Temporarily Forbidding Abortions (Except to Protect Life or Health of the Woman)?
Can it justify temporarily forbidding people to buy guns?
Ring's Expanding Public-Private Panopticon Doesn't Actually Stop Crime
Despite broad claims from the company, available police reports don't support the idea that filming everything in front of people's doors stops much crime.
Is Wearing a Face Mask in Public To Ward Off COVID-19 a Crime?
It depends on the state where you live.
Can't Seal Police Abuse Settlement Amount Just Because Beneficiary is a Minor
The district court reasoned that sealing was justified because of "the child's privacy interest in being protected from financial predators or others who would harass the child simply because they know the amount received." No, said the Fifth Circuit.
My New "Atlantic" Article Making the Case for Strengthening Protection for Property Rights
It particularly emphasizes ways in which weak property rights harm the poor and disadvantaged.
Don't Let Temporary COVID-19 Restrictions Become Permanent
Emergency restrictions should always be lifted as soon as the crisis has sufficiently abated.
Texas, Ohio Officials Use COVID-19 as an Excuse To Restrict Abortion
Plus: the pandemic in prisons, pushback on Trump's prescription for economic rebound, and more...
China's Censorship Helped Start a Pandemic. Can Free Speech End It?
The contagious spread of information is in a race against the contagious spread of coronavirus.
Is the FBI Snooping on Political Groups and Ideological Publications?
They have a long history of spying on dissident political groups, from early 20th century socialists and mid-century civil rights leaders to modern environmentalists and Black Lives Matter.
Justice Department Reportedly Asks Congress for Indefinite Detention Powers To Fight Coronavirus
Congress should loudly and unanimously reject this insanity.
Owner of DERBY-PIE Trademark Can't Stop Kentucky Newspaper from Discussing Other Derby Pies
An important principle, which also applies to uses of trademarked terms in films, books, video games, and the like: "A party does not violate trademark law solely by using words another entity has trademarked."
Does the Takings Clause Require Compensation for Coronavirus Shutdowns?
Under current Supreme Court precedent, the answer is almost always going to be "no." But some compensation may be morally imperative, even if not legally required.
Comedian Ordered Not to Post Anything "That Would Suggest to Prospective Employers That They Should Not Hire … or Book" Her Comedian Ex
The California Court of Appeal reversed, in an interesting case about allegations of physical abuse—and claims that the allegations were themselves a form of "abuse."
Don't Expect Millions To Die From Coronavirus, Says Richard Epstein
The NYU Law professor thinks we're in for a mess of bad epidemiology, ineffective stimulus, and misguided quarantines.
Will Aggressive COVID-19 Control Measures Cost More Than They Are Worth?
Politicians seem to be proceeding on the dangerous assumption that cost-effectiveness does not matter.
Why I'm Not (Yet?) Much Worried About the Civil Liberties Restrictions Flowing from the Coronavirus Response
The restrictions are less dangerous precisely because they are so broad and onerous.
Federal Lawsuit Against Pro-Palestinian / Anti-Semitic Protesters Outside Synagogue
The plaintiffs are claiming, among other things, "group libel."
The EARN IT Act Is the New FOSTA
The new bill takes aim at internet freedom and privacy under the pretense of saving kids.
COVID-19 Reminds Us: Social Media Is Good, Actually
Will coronavirus help rehabilitate tech's rep?
Adjudication Outside Article III (part one)
Why there are no "exceptions" to Article III
Ross Douthat: 'When They Take the Porn, You Can Curse My Name'
New York Times columnist and Decadent Society author defends prohibitionism in a conversation on The Fifth Column.
Champaign (Ill.) Emergency Order Doesn't Ban Guns, But Does Authorize (Likely Unconstitutional) Emergency Gun Bans
The order activates a pre-existing ordinance, which authorizes a wide range of actions, including curfews, alcohol sales, gun sales, property seizures, and more.
Court Rules Mostly for Catholic Nurse Who Objected to Newly Imposed Birth-Control and Abortion-Referral Duties
The Illinois Appellate Court's decision interprets the Illinois version of the RFRA, and the separate Illinois Health Care Right of Conscience Act (which bans all discrimination "because of [a] person's conscientious refusal to receive, obtain, accept, perform, assist, counsel, suggest, recommend, refer or participate in any way in any particular form of health care services contrary to his or her conscience").
China Bans Pandemic Video Game From App Store and Steam
Plague Inc. simulates the spread of coronavirus.
A Qualified Immunity Case That the Federal Courts Got Right
Fatal police shootings and the Fourth Amendment
Sealing Court Filings Drawn from Discovery Requires More Than Just General Assertions of Confidentiality
A case decided Monday reaffirms this principle, especially in the Seventh Circuit.
Over Objections From Privacy Advocates, Tame Surveillance Bill Sails Through the House
Some Republican senators are working hard to get Trump behind stronger fixes.
Trump Confuses Nation With COVID-19 Address
Plus: A second person appears to be cured of HIV, cops can destroy your home for no reason and refuse to pay, and more...
Accusations of Trying to "Hit on Underage Girls" Aren't Defamatory Without Proof of Actual Damage,
at least under the Illinois "innocent construction" rule, under which "a nondefamatory interpretation must be adopted if it is reasonable"—"a reasonable reading of Lorenz's article is that although Wedgewood communicated with underage girls, he never meant to take things further."
Do You Have a First Amendment Right to a Slayer-Themed License Plate?
A new lawsuit is challenging the California DMV's rejection of allegedly offensive personalized license plates.
Would Italian-Style Lockdowns to Curtail the Spread of Coronavirus Pass Legal Muster in the U.S.?
The extent of state and federal quarantine powers is surprisingly unsettled.
A Compromise Bill on Domestic Surveillance Reform Aims to Do Just Enough to Shut Trump Up
Privacy activists on the left and the right decry a limp set of proposed changes to the USA Freedom Act.
Can Law Ban False Reporting About Coronavirus?
Probably, if it's limited to knowing falsehoods (or perhaps statements where the speaker knows they are probably false).
Rocker Nick Cave Defends Old Songs From 'Perpetually Pissed Off Coterie of Pearl-Clutchers'
"I would rather be remembered for writing something that was...offensive, than to be forgotten for writing something bloodless."
The Bloomberg and Steyer Fiascoes Should Give Pause to Speech Restrictionists
No amount of money can buy victory for candidates who fail to persuade voters.
Biden Likens Owning an AR-15 to Falsely Shouting Fire in a Crowded Theater
The presidential contender has trouble explaining why the guns he wants to ban fall outside the Second Amendment.
New Jersey Security Guard Arrested for Gun He Has Permit to Carry
When it comes to guns, pretty much nothing is legal in New Jersey, according to their police.
Manhattan Federal Court Coronavirus-Related Restrictions
In light of this, should the presumptive First Amendment right of access to court cases require the court to provide video coverage of hearings?
