Eugene Volokh is the Thomas M. Siebel Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford, and the Gary T. Schwartz Distinguished Professor of Law Emeritus and Distinguished Research Professor at UCLA School of Law. Naturally, his posts here (like the opinions of the other bloggers) are his own, and not endorsed by any institution. He is also the co-host of the Free Speech Unmuted podcast.
Eugene Volokh
Latest from Eugene Volokh
"Censorship by Zoom and Other Private Platforms": The UC Academic Freedom Committee's Concerns
"The University’s responsibility to protect academic freedom and freedom of expression cannot be outsourced."
University Decisions About Funding Student Groups Can't Rely on "Unbridled Discretion"
An interesting ruling involving the University of Minnesota, by Judge Patrick Schiltz (himself a former professor).
"To Say That the Court Finds the Motion Puzzling Is to Do a Disservice to Puzzles Everywhere"
Plus a special appearance by The Princess Bride and Weekend at Bernie's.
More on Impeachment Trials of Former Officials
From Sen. Mike Lee, Prof. Eugene Kontorovich, Prof. Philip Bobbitt, and Prof. Brian Kalt
Maryland High Court Upholds 8½-Year Sentence for Perjurious Claim of Unwanted Sexual Touching
The defendant swore a Verizon store employee "cupped her breast and touched her inner thigh," but surveillance video showed otherwise.
California Law Limiting Private Employers' Restriction on Employee Speech
applied by a federal court in a case involving Juul Labs.
Court Allows U.S. Prosecution for American's North Korea Speech About Cryptocurrency
A decision in the case of Ethereum researcher Virgil Griffith, denying his motion to dismiss.
i/s/h/a
What does this legal acronym mean?
Legislator Free to Block Users from Her Campaign-Focused Twitter Account
So the Eighth Circuit held yesterday, distinguishing the @RealDonaldTrump case on the grounds that the Trump account was used for much more official activity.
Can California Employee Be Fired for Attending the Jan. 6 Protest at the Capitol?
California statutes suggest the answer may be no, so long as the firing is based on the political activity, and not on criminal conduct.
May N.Y. Businesses Fire Employees for Using Parler and Gab?
Colleen Oefelein was fired by the Jennifer De Chiara Literary Agency, and the incident illustrates the vagueness of New York law on this point.
Public Has Right "to See What Is Going Into the Sausage Factory [of Litigation], Even if a Particular Sausage Is Never Made"
Federal court holds that documents accompanying motions are presumptively accessible even if the case settles before the court decides the motion.
Pretrial Release Condition: Can't Speak About "the [Capitol] Protest or the Matters Related to the United States Government"
And can't "participate in any protests, rallies or demonstrations."
Might Federal Preemption of Speech-Protective State Laws Violate the First Amendment?
And, if so, what does this mean for 47 U.S.C. § 230?
Judge Warns Business Litigants (Including Facebook) About Excessive Sealing Requests
"These allegations stand at the heart of plaintiffs' claims, and sealing them would make this litigation virtually incomprehensible to the public."
Do Critics of Police Have the First Amendment Procedural Protections That Nazis Get?
The Ohio S. Ct. will take up the question, in the Cincinnati prior restraint case in which we filed an amicus brief.
New Administration "Moving in Laser Like Fashion" to Uncover "Even Libertarians" in "an Unholy Alliance"
So states former Obama Administration CIA Director John Brennan.
"Is This Law Professor Really a Homicidal Threat?"
No, not me! More on the University of Illinois at Chicago John Marshall Law School / Professor Jason Kilborn controversy.
"On That Premise This Land Was Created, and on That Premise It Has Grown to Greatness"
"The greater the importance of safeguarding the community from incitements to the overthrow of our institutions by force ..., the more imperative is the need to preserve inviolate the constitutional rights of free speech ... to maintain the opportunity for free political discussion, to the end that government may be responsive to the will of the people and that changes, if desired, may be obtained by peaceful means."
"The First Amendment Is Interpreted by the Courts, not Tech Companies"
A nice line, though said in a narrow context (whether Facebook's decision not to remove comments from a government agency's page is relevant to whether the government agency could delete them).
"The Law School Acknowledges That the Racial and Gender References on the Examination Were Deeply Offensive"
A controversy at the University of Illinois Chicago John Marshall Law School (not to be confused with the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign).
Can Executive Official Be Removed from Office for "Inciting" Illegal Conduct?
Yes, when it comes to a recall in Washington State, even when the official is just being accused of violating his duties, not committing a crime.
Court Can Let Pro-Vaccination Divorced Parent Vaccinate Child,
even when the parents had originally agreed not to vaccinate, and one parent later changed his mind.
N.H.'s Criminal Libel Law Upheld, Vagueness Challenge Rejected
A federal court had earlier denied the state's motion to dismiss the challenge; but now it has granted a renewed motion.
DERBY-PIE Trademark Owner Can't Stop Newspaper from Discussing Other Derby Pies
An interesting illustration of the "non-trademark use" doctrine.
