Eugene Volokh

Volokh Conspiracy

Nieves v. Bartlett and Allegedly Retaliatory Arrests Based on Speech Alone

The Sixth Circuit suggests an important limit on the Supreme Court's Nieves precedent, though it doesn't decide the question.

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.29.2019 4:10 PM

Volokh Conspiracy

Laws Banning "Impair[ing] the Functions of any Police … Operations"

The Sixth Circuit expresses concern that such bans may be unconstitutionally vague or overbroad.

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.29.2019 4:02 PM

Volokh Conspiracy

The First Amendment and a Parody of a Police Department Web Page

The parodist was arrested for "unlawfully impair[ing] the department's functions," but was acquitted; the Sixth Circuit just let the parodist's lawsuit against the city proceed.

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.29.2019 3:58 PM

Volokh Conspiracy

Judge Rejects Nicholas Sandmann's Claim Against Washington Post

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.27.2019 12:13 AM

Volokh Conspiracy

From a Transcript I Just Read,

in a case brought by a fellow law professor.

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.26.2019 9:01 AM

Volokh Conspiracy

CBS News Story on Forged Court Orders Aimed at Vanishing Posts from Google Searches

"I'm trying to figure out how the same links that are in this contract that you were paid $7,500 to remove end up in a fake court order with the client's name?"

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.25.2019 7:36 PM

Volokh Conspiracy

Just Pay the Traffic Ticket, Dude …

... rather than committing felony forgery.

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.25.2019 12:02 PM

Volokh Conspiracy

Employment Discrimination Plaintiff Can't Get Case Sealed After Settlement

Stephanie Gilliard argued "that offers of employment have been rescinded after Google searches of her name revealed the events of this case, namely her surreptitious recordings of her co-workers."

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.24.2019 5:35 PM

Volokh Conspiracy

When Jimmy McGill Renames Himself Saul Goodman ("Better Call Saul") to Make Himself Seem Jewish,

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.24.2019 2:42 PM

Volokh Conspiracy

"A Poster Boy for the Long-Sentenced, Non-Violent Drug Offender?"

Sen. Cory Booker gives William Underwood as an example of a man "serving a life sentence ... for a nonviolent drug crime he committed in 1988." But "[t]he government's evidence at trial showed that from the 1970's until his arrest in late 1988, Underwood supervised and controlled an extensive and extremely violent narcotics trafficking operation involving a number of murders and conspiracies to murder ...."

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.24.2019 1:10 PM

Volokh Conspiracy

Mark Kleiman, Leading Drug Policy Scholar (and Early Blogger), Dies at 68

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.23.2019 12:09 AM

Volokh Conspiracy

Legal Duty to Report Your Coworkers' Off-the-Job Crimes?

A New Jersey appellate court said a co-worker relationship (if long-lasting and close enough) "would be adequate to fairly warrant the imposition of a duty to act." The New Jersey Supreme Court declined to opine on this, and instead concludes that such a duty wouldn't be triggered on the facts of this case.

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.22.2019 1:56 PM

Volokh Conspiracy

Prof. John Harrison (U. Va.), Guest-Blogging About Executive Power

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.22.2019 11:09 AM

Volokh Conspiracy

No Duty to Exclude the Creepy

Interesting tort analysis stemming from a supermarket ice cream aisle murder.

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.22.2019 8:03 AM

Volokh Conspiracy

Welcome to Our New Coblogger, Josh Blackman

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.21.2019 11:03 PM

Volokh Conspiracy

Libel Litigation in … Disneyland Social Clubs

Banal law, but fun facts.

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.19.2019 6:51 PM

Volokh Conspiracy

Second Amendment Doesn't Protect Gun Possession in Capitol Parking Lot

So the D.C. Circuit held today.

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.19.2019 6:33 PM

Volokh Conspiracy

Advice to Lawyers from a Judge

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.19.2019 6:19 PM

Volokh Conspiracy

Doe v. Doe Libel Lawsuit Over Allegations of Sexual Misconduct by a Business Executive

Unsurprisingly, the exact allegations that are said to be libelous don't appear in the complaint.

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.19.2019 8:01 AM

Volokh Conspiracy

Doctor Liable to Patient's Sex Partner …

... for negligently (and erroneously) telling the patient he had tested negative for an STD.

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.18.2019 3:21 PM

Volokh Conspiracy

N.Y. Court Refuses to Enjoin Allegedly Libelous Speech About Chinese Official

The plaintiff, Yan Huang, is vice minister of China's Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development. Defendant, Wengui Guo, who also goes by Miles Kwok, has been described as a "renegade Chinese billionaire," who fled China and now lives in New York.

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.17.2019 8:41 PM

Volokh Conspiracy

Runescape "Muting" Leads to First Amendment / Due Process Lawsuit Against Video Game Company

Unsurprisingly, the lawsuit goes nowhere.

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.17.2019 7:49 PM

Volokh Conspiracy

When Are Athletes Liable for Injuries They Cause?

Plus a side note on Mormon church basketball.

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.17.2019 11:20 AM

Volokh Conspiracy

The Tort of Loss of Sepulcher

I'll bet you never studied this (at least under this name) in your 1L Torts class.

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.16.2019 12:38 PM

Volokh Conspiracy

Texas Court Rejects Once-Suspended Doctor's Lawsuit Over Reporting of the Suspension

Dr. Calvin Day had claimed that describing his suspension as based on "unprofessional conduct" was libelous. (He had also earlier sought to get dismissed criminal charges expunged, and tried to bind local news outlets to the expungement order.) He lost, and was ordered to pay over $80,000 in attorney's fees.

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.16.2019 8:01 AM

Volokh Conspiracy

City May Not Bargain for Certain Speech Restrictions When Settling Lawsuits Against Police Department

The First Amendment makes such waivers of plaintiff's free speech rights unenforceable.

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.15.2019 5:23 PM

Free Speech

Court Refuses to Issue Gag Order and Sealing Order in Sexual Harassment Suit Against YMCA of Pikes Peak

(Disclosure: I had filed an objection, on my own behalf, to the motion to seal.)

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.15.2019 8:01 AM

Free Speech

"Once the Cat Is Out of the Bag, the Ball Game Is Over."

More than just a mixed metaphor -- it's a legal doctrine.

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.13.2019 2:31 PM

Crime

Do You Work for an ISP, a Blog Hosting Company, a Domain Name Registrar, or the Like?

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.11.2019 8:00 PM

Free Speech

Wash. Sup. Ct. Upholds Campaign Finance Voucher Tax

Quite correctly, I think.

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.11.2019 1:16 PM

Free Speech

Limits of "Revenge Porn" Laws

An interesting D.C. trial court decision from last year, involving an image of nudity submitted as part of a court case.

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.11.2019 8:01 AM

Crime

Corpus Linguistics in Court?

Two Sixth Circuit judges debate the issue, in an opinion filed today.

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.10.2019 8:16 PM

Crime

The Rock Ethics Institute

So many rock artists give them so much to work with ....

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.10.2019 7:24 PM

Free Speech

Man Sues Anti-Homosexuality Group for Libel, Loses, Unsuccessfully Tries to Seal Court Opinions

The plaintiff had pleaded guilty to, among other things, having sex with a minor (apparently when he was 21 and the minor was 15); the alleged libel stemmed from, among other things, reports of that crime.

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.10.2019 8:03 AM

Free Speech

New Orleans Mural Ordinance, Which Regulates "Works of Art," Is Unconstitutionally Vague

So a district court held today.

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.9.2019 8:33 PM

Crime

Government-Run Fora on Private Platforms, in the @RealDonaldTrump User Blocking Controversy

Whether the First Amendment applies generally turns on who is imposing a restriction (the government vs. a private party), not on whether the speech is on public or private property.

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.9.2019 3:09 PM

Free Speech

Second Circuit: Unconstitutional for @RealDonaldTrump to Block Twitter Users Based on Viewpoint

The reasoning would apply to other politicians' accounts that are seen as "official" rather than personal, and to accounts that are run by government entities (such as school boards) rather than individual politicians.

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.9.2019 12:24 PM

Public Access

Sealing Records of a Teacher's Prosecution for Sexual Conduct with Underage Students?

An interesting Massachusetts decision from a couple of months ago, upholding a trial court's refusal to seal under such circumstances.

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.8.2019 5:25 PM

Crime

The Law of the Ice Cream Tub Licker

Licking an ice cream tub in a supermarket and putting it back -- is that second-degree felony "tampering with consumer product" in Texas?

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.5.2019 5:40 PM

Religion

If Children "Will Be Enrolled and Be Participants in the Catholic Religion," Does This Require Taking Them to Mass?

The enrolled/participants requirement was part of a divorcing couple's custody agreement -- may a court interpret this as requiring the parent with Sunday custody to take the children to mass, or give up the relevant part of her parenting time?

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.5.2019 3:24 PM

Free Speech

Is Wrongful Search Engine Optimization a Tort?

An anonymous lawsuit claims that it's tortious to try to artificially boost the prominence of an embarrassing article.

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.5.2019 3:08 PM

Islam

OK to Let Muslim Witness Testify "Wearing a Scarf Over Part of Her Face"

So holds a Pennsylvania appellate decision.

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.4.2019 11:17 AM

Libel

"Prominent Pornography Researcher Frames Defamation Claims As Sexual Harassment, Prompting a Defamation Suit by Her Target"

An academic debate turns into professional and legal accusations.

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.3.2019 1:22 PM

Free Speech

First Amendment Likely Bars Arizona's Withdrawal of Tax Benefits to Nike Over Betsy Ross Sneaker Controversy

The Supreme Court has held that the government generally may not terminate contracts with contractors based on their constitutionally protected speech; the same likely applies to financial incentives..

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.2.2019 11:24 PM

Crime

Want to Donate Your Papers to a University, to Be Opened Some Years Later? Donate to a Private University, Not a Public One

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.2.2019 8:02 AM

Free Speech

No Preliminary Injunction, No Pseudonymity, No Sealing in Internet Libel Case

That's what a New York trial court decision just posted online today held -- correctly, I think.

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.1.2019 6:24 PM

Due Process

Purdue Student Expelled for Alleged Sexual Abuse Can Proceed With His Due Process and Sex Discrimination Claims

"Fairness can rarely be obtained by secret, one-sided determination of facts decisive of rights."

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.1.2019 2:42 PM

Free Speech

Rape Claims, Speech Restrictions, and Consent

Noted political publicist Trevor FitzGibbon (who had represented Julian Assange) sues whistleblower lawyer Jesselyn Radack (who had represented Edward Snowden) -- a second time.

Eugene Volokh |The Volokh Conspiracy | 7.1.2019 8:01 AM