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.
Eugene Volokh
Latest from Eugene Volokh
Overbroad Injunction Used to Try to Vanish Articles About Daughter's Property Lawsuit Against Father
A court order, in Kelly Hyman v. Alex Daoud, on its face seems to command all Internet services to remove material that mentions the daughter (Kelly Hyman), or her husband (retired federal bankruptcy judge Paul Hyman).
Maybe He Deserved Those Negative Online Reviews?
"Underhill was disciplined for publicly responding to former clients’ negative online reviews with internet postings that disclosed sensitive and confidential information obtained during the representation. Underhill then ...."
Apple's Chief Security Officer + Santa Clara County Sheriff's Officials Indicted for Concealed Carry License Bribery
California is one of nine states that leaves law enforcement with broad discretion to decide whether to grant a license.
Pennsylvania S. Ct. Rejects Challenges to Certain Mail-In Ballots
The claim was brought by the Trump campaign; the decision appears to be 4-3 as to some matters, 7-0 as to others.
First Amendment Generally Protects Speech in the U.S. by Non-U.S.-Citizens/Residents
An interesting, though unsurprising, decision in a case brought by prominent Russian businessmen over the Fusion GPS Steele Dossier.
"Journalism Professors Demand Iowa State University Disband the College Republicans Over Offensive Tweet"
The University rightly responds: "At the core of this demand is a disconnect between the law and First Amendment freedoms guaranteed by our Constitution, and the desire by many in the campus community to punish those whose comments are hurtful to others."
Fulton v. City of Philadelphia and Free Exercise: A Debate Between Jordan Lorence (ADF) and Me
Part of the Federalist Society's "Feddie Night Fights."
Current House of Representatives Balance 222 D to 209 R, 4 Races Still Not Called
Republicans lead in all four races, but by small margins, some tiny; so far, Republicans have gained 9 seats and Democrats have lost 9.
Libel Case Can't Be Litigated with Alleged Libel Sealed
So says the Delaware Court of Chancery: "If the information currently redacted remains so, the public will have no means to understand the dispute MetTel has asked the Court to adjudicate."
Criminal Libel for High School Student to Falsely Write That He'd Had Sex with Teacher
Louisiana is one of about a dozen states that has a criminal libel statute; my sense is that, throughout the country, there are likely about 20-30 criminal libel prosecutions per year.
Christians Trying to Convert Muslims and Jews to Christianity
"So what?." asks David Harsanyi at the National Review, quite correctly.
"a homosexual social media website called reddit"
A mayoral candidate, a supposed Aryan bicyclist, a video, a newspaper story, and a libel lawsuit.
Two Men Charged With Submitting >8000 Fraudulent Voter Registrations in Attempt to Get One Elected Mayor
Carlos Montenegro was running for mayor of Hawthorne, an 85,000-person city in South Central L.A.
State Election Results 2020
Nice summary from the National Conference of State Legislatures.
Biden Transition Team Member's Op-Ed on "Why America Needs a Hate Speech Law"
Richard Stengel published that argument in the Washington Post last year.
Why Do We Call Ourselves "The Volokh Conspiracy"?
A little bit of absurdist humor that's stuck with us for 18 years.
Sinatra, Music, the Texas Guitar Army, the First Amendment, and Coronavirus
That's Judge John Sinatra (W.D.N.Y.), holding that a N.Y. restriction on live music was unconstitutional.
Mississippi School Bans "Jesus Loves Me" Mask, Allegedly Allows "Black Lives Matter" Masks
The policy forbids "political, religious, sexual or any inappropriate symbols, gestures or statements that may be offensive, disruptive or deemed distractive to the school environment."
"Supreme Court Plans an Attack on Independent Judiciary, Says Labour"
(That's the UK Supreme Court.)
Some Thoughts on the Avenatti v. Fox News Libel Lawsuit
Past perfect, libel-proof plaintiffs, substantial truth, “actual malice,” statutes of limitations, and more.
"In July, R.W. Continued to Quote Scripture, but Also Sent to [J.W.] a Picture Text of His Genital Area."
A quote for the ages, from an Indiana Court of Appeals opinion handed down Friday.
Lawyers Set to Be Executed
"Lawyers For Mentally Ill Woman Set To Be Executed By U.S. Contract Coronavirus" is the full headline, from the HuffPost.
Grandmother Ordered To Say Nothing About Dispute with Other Grandmother (the Grandchild's Guardian)
No "distribution of information or sharing of her opinion on this matter of any sort."
Lawyer Gets Temporary Injunction Against Gripe Site That Says He's a "Fraud," "Cowardly," "Cannot Be Trusted"
But I think the First Amendment prohibits such pretrial injunctions, and in any event the injunction targets opinions and not just false factual assertions.
L.A. Suburban School District Forbids To Kill a Mockingbird, Of Mice and Men, and More in High School Readings
Other excluded books: Huckleberry Finn, The Cay, and Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry.
Pennsylvania Court Orders That Certain Ballots May Not Legally Be Counted
"[T]he state may not count ballots where the voters needed to provide proof of identification and failed to do so by Nov. 9," despite the Pennsylvania Secretary of State's attempt to extend the deadline to Nov. 12.
Trump v. CNN Libel Suit Dismissed for Now
The court finds that the Trump campaign didn't offer enough facts suggesting that CNN knew the statement was false (or was likely false); the campaign is allowed to file an amended complaint if it can make more specific allegations.
SmartNews App
If you've used it, how have you liked it?
Gun Restrictions as Analogy for Justifying Speech Restrictions
"The state may restrict a convicted felon's right ... to possess a firearm," so a state may order a civil case defendant to stop saying things online about plaintiff that "severe[ly] emotional distress" that plaintiff.
Daily Coronavirus Deaths in Europe Have Returned to March/April Peak
A helpful (and frightening) graph from Statista, as of today (Nov. 11).
Call Your Mother! The Judge Says You Have To
A thousand jokes come to life.
