Eugene Volokh is the Thomas M. Siebel Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford, and the Gary T. Schwartz Distinguished Professor of Law at UCLA School of Law (Emeritus starting July 2024). Naturally, his posts here (like the opinions of the other bloggers) are his own, and not endorsed by any educational institution.
Eugene Volokh
Latest from Eugene Volokh
Allowing "Black Lives Matter" Signs in Classrooms But Forbidding "All Lives Matter"/"Blue Lives Matter" Might Violate First Amendment
So holds the Eighth Circuit, concluding that the plaintiffs had sufficiently alleged that the "Black Lives Matter" signs were private speech, rather than government speech.
If Pseudonyms, Then What Kind? How About "Doe WHBE 3"?
Should pseudonymous litigants, and any precedents set in their cases, be known by the initials of the law firms that represent them?
Federal Low-Security Inmate Punished Based on Public TikTok Video Showing Him Making Contraband Lobster
"Petitioner was identified in a public TikTok video made with a contraband cellphone showing him and several other inmates preparing, cooking, or eating contraband food inside a low-security federal prison camp."
Court Strikes Down Arkansas Town Limit on Signature Gathering at Town Festival
The Town of Rose Bud restriction appears aimed at a particular proposed constitutional amendment, which would "require all schools receiving public funds to meet identical standards and would require universal access to pre-K education."
Monday Open Thread
What's on your mind?
No First Amendment Protection for "Shouting into a Bullhorn and Blaring the Bullhorn's Siren as Close as Three Feet from Government Employees …
and continuing the conduct while following those employees."
Florida S. Ct. Reads Florida Anti-Riot Statute as Narrowly Focused on Violence
In this, the court agrees with the Florida Attorney General and the Governor’s office, and disagrees with the challengers who are trying to get the statute struck down on First Amendment grounds.
Professors Lacked First Amendment Right to Post Flyers Calling Colleague and Student Group Racist
Two public university professors were disciplined for posting fliers saying a colleague was racist, and that a student group (Turning Point USA) was a racist "national hate group" with "ties to white supremacy."
"Indian National" Extradited "in Connection with Foiled Plot to Assassinate U.S. Citizen" for Citizen's Sikh Separatist Advocacy
The government alleges that Nikhil Gupta was involved in a "plot, directed by an employee of the Indian government, to target and assassinate a U.S. citizen for his support of the Sikh separatist movement in India."
Shouting "Chick with a Dick" "Multiple Times" at City Council Meeting Was Disruptive, Could Justify Ejection
So holds a federal court, also concluding that earlier sexual discussions could likewise justify restriction in the open public comment period (treated by the law as a “limited public forum,” in which reasonable and viewpoint-neutral restrictions are constitutional).
Journal of Free Speech Law: "FDA Regulation of Physicians' Professional Speech," by Prof. Barbara J. Evans
An early article from what will eventually be several on Information as Medicine.
Court Refuses to Order Redaction of Filings That Reveal Litigant's Past Pseudonymous Lawsuits
A California trial court so ruled, and the California Court of Appeal just upheld that decision.
"What Happens … When Two School Employees Suspect That Their Colleague is Under the Influence
"of prescription medication, search her bag without permission, and find a firearm inside? And what happens when school board officials find out and want to question the perpetrator? Has the Fourth Amendment been transgressed?"
$47K Sanctions for "Filing … Election Challenge Without Substantial Justification" in Arizona
The sanctions were imposed against Mark Finchem, "the Republican Party nominee for Arizona Secretary of State, [who] lost the November 8, 2022, election by more than 120,000 votes," and his lawyer.
Is Promotion of Free Services "Commercial Speech" for First Amendment Purposes?
One of several interesting questions that arises in a case involving regulations of pregnancy centers that seek to help pregnant women without offering abortions or abortion counseling.
"Deans Manage Their Departments Like Don Corleone, / Although Their Crimes Are Not as Organized."
"Philologists may quibble, but who can deny / that 'Dean' and 'Don' are just a vowel away?"
Justices Agree on Constitutionality of Trademark Restriction, Disagree on How to Approach Such Questions
The underlying methodological debate might also bear on free speech disputes more broadly.
Plaintiff Sufficiently Alleged Knowing/Reckless Falsehood in CNN Story About Evacuating Afghans During Withdrawal
"Young proffered CNN messages and emails that showed internal concern about the completeness and veracity of the reporting—the story is 'a mess,' 'incomplete,' not 'fleshed out for digital,' 'the story is 80% emotion, 20% obscured fact,' and 'full of holes like Swiss cheese.'"
Florida Court Rejects Pseudonymous Petition to Get Public Records
The case involved a public records request to identify the "six or seven pretty big legal conservative heavyweights" whom Gov. DeSantis labeled as "trusted advisors for his judicial appointments to the Florida Supreme Court."
Oklahoma S. Ct. Vacates Restraining Order Against Self-Described Pastor Who Was Sharply Condemning Pro-Gay-Equality Activists
The court concludes the pastor's posts were about the activists' organization (Oklahomans for Equality) and not about them personally; it thus avoided having to decide whether the First Amendment would have protected the speech if it was indeed about the activists personally.
Journal of Free Speech Law: "Fiction, Defamation, and Freedom of Speech," by Prof. Collin O'Neil
An article from the Defamation: Philosophical and Legal Perspectives symposium, sponsored by the Center for Legal Philosophy at UC Irvine.