Civil Liberties
3 Areas Where the Courts Pushed Back Against Trump's Attempts To Avoid Judicial Review in 2025
The president asserted broad powers to deport people, impose tariffs, and deploy the National Guard based on his own unilateral determinations.
Did Brett Kavanaugh Just Apologize for Butchering the Fourth Amendment? Maybe.
Puzzling over a curious omission from the conservative justice.
If You Give a Bear a Badge, Will It Respect Your Rights?
Despite their general ignorance of constitutional law, bears pose a much less grave threat to your civil liberties than humans do.
Man Who Had Pleaded Guilty to Felony Forgery of Court Orders Sues Over Being Called "Convicted Felon"
From a Justice Department press release as to the original forgery: "Michael Arnstein's blatant criminal scheme to exploit the authority of the federal judiciary for his company's benefit was outrageous. As Arnstein has learned, his attempts to remove negative reviews about his business from Google search results by forging a U.S. District Court judge's signature may have worked in the short term, but it also earned him nine months in a federal prison."
Trump Bars 5 Europeans From the U.S. Over Their Censorship Efforts
Creeping authoritarianism in the European Union gets pushback from an administration that has its own rocky relationship with free speech.
How Politicians and Cops Tried To Dodge Responsibility in 2025
Presidents, legislators, and police officers were desperate to blame anyone but themselves.
School Employees' Lawsuit Claiming "Equity Training" Violated First Amendment Can Go Forward
So holds a majority of the Eighth Circuit federal court of appeals, sitting en banc.
These Progressives Seek to 'Disempower' the Courts
Is unfettered majority rule actually a good idea for the left to embrace?
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Innocent Man Sues for Over $60,000 After Police Blew Up His Business. A Court Says He's Entitled to Nothing.
It is yet another ruling that shields the government from liability for damages caused by law enforcement.
The TRUMP AMERICA AI Act Is Every Bit As Bad As You Would Expect. Maybe Worse.
Sen. Marsha Blackburn’s latest is an anti-tech omnibus, combining years' worth of dangerous policy ideas into one big, bad bill.
Bail Reform Faces Backlash as Policymakers Move To Require Cash Bond for Pre-Trial Defendants
Critics of cash bail say it creates a two-tiered justice system: Those who can pay maintain their freedom, while those unable to pay remain behind bars.
"[T]he First and Fifth Amendments Require ICE to Provide Information About the Whereabouts of a Detained Person"
ICE Salt Lake City apparently isn't answering its phone.
Could the Feds Throw You in Jail for Merely Filming ICE Immigration Raids?
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said "videotaping" agents was violence—but Border Patrol brought a film crew to Chicago-area raids.
Trial Court Had Ordered Mother to Only Call Son by First Name (Javier), not Middle Name (Reece), in Public
But the Colorado Court of Appeals just reversed that, in part on First Amendment grounds.
From Nixon to Trump, the 'War on Drugs' Has Been a Disaster for Americans' Freedom
The Trump administration's chest-pounding approach is costing lives and eroding freedoms.
The Fourth Amendment's Erratic Year at the Supreme Court
The right to be free from unreasonable search and seizure had a rocky 2025.
The DOJ Assails D.C.'s 'Assault Weapon' Ban As an Arbitrary, Historically Ungrounded Gun Law
The department's lawsuit notes that the prohibited firearms are "in common use" for "lawful purposes," meaning they are covered by the Second Amendment.
Refusing To Let Trump Deploy the National Guard in Chicago, SCOTUS Adds a New Wrinkle To the Debate
The justices suggested the president is misinterpreting "the regular forces," a key phrase in the statute on which he is relying.
Evidence of Plaintiff's Suicide Excluded in Lawsuit Alleging Threats of Prosecution Aimed at Censoring His Posts About High School Girls' Bathrooms
"Plaintiff has not alleged that Defendants' conduct caused a mental condition in which Mr. McBreairty could not control his suicidal impulses."
Volokh Conspiracy Commenter ReaderY Makes The Big Time!
Comment on this blog = reaction "from the Stanford Law School" = "negative reaction of the legal community."
10 Times That 2025 Tried To Stop Kids From Growing Up
Parents faced arrests, investigations, and fear-driven rules—but there was also meaningful progress toward making independence normal again.
Andor Creator Tony Gilroy on Bureaucracy and the Surveillance State
Tony Gilroy examines how Andor portrays authoritarian power as a bureaucratic system, the moral compromises of life under surveillance, and the role ordinary people play in enforcing oppressive systems.
Good News for D.C.'s Gun Owners
Plus: Homeownership myths and realities, discrimination at the theater, career diplomats brought home, and more...
Parent's Claim Over School Board Meeting Attendance Ban Can Go Forward
The matter stems from a controversy over books with sexual content in the school library, and the parent's shouting that school board members "should be arrested."
Mercy Otis Warren, the Founding Mother Who Opposed the Constitution
Remembering an important voice from the founding era.
Media Matters Acted Too Late in Moving in U.S. Court to Block X's Irish Lawsuit
The lawsuit stems from Media Matters' claim that X's "content moderation policies permitted the placement of 'pro-Nazi' content next to advertisements for major brands."
The 9th Circuit Upholds a University of Washington Professor's Right to Mock 'Land Acknowledgments'
The appeals court ruled that administrators violated Stuart Reges' First Amendment rights when they investigated and threatened to punish him for constitutionally protected speech.
DHS Says Recording or Following Law Enforcement 'Sure Sounds Like Obstruction of Justice'
Seven federal circuit courts have upheld the First Amendment right to record and monitor the police.
Deplatforming Backfired
Progressive censors failed to suppress our political demons. It's finally time to confront them.
Shein Can't Sell Sex Toys Unless It Checks IDs, French Court Says
Laws requiring porn platforms to age-check visitors are becoming "a Swiss army knife for the government."
N.Y. State Police Attempt to Get "Red Flag" Gun Ban Order Against 11-Year-Old Girl Was "Legally Frivolous," "Needlessly Risk[ed] Further Injury"
The basis for the attempt was that the girl had texted a classmate that she was thinking of hanging herself.
