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
Indiana Defendants Get "Benefit of Hindsight When It Reveals Their Conduct Was Necessary in Self-Defense," …
"even though that necessity wasn't fully apparent in the moment."
Professor Can Continue with First Amendment Claim Over Denial of Raise for Including Expurgated Slurs on Exam
The Seventh Circuit so held yesterday; the case also involved other controversial statements besides the expurgated slur.
Nevada Math Prof Alleges Discipline for "Voic[ing] Concerns About … the Math Department … Lower[ing] Its Curriculum Standards"
The Ninth Circuit allows his First Amendment claim against his community college to go forward.
"The Court Shouldn't Bruen-ize the Free Exercise Clause"
Some thoughts from Michael McConnell, Douglas Laycock, Stephanie Barclay, and Mark Storslee.
Alleged Rape Victim Can't Litigate Against Sean Combs (P. Diddy) Pseudonymously …
though she had been temporarily allowed to do so at first.
May Government Refuse to Hire Notre Dame Students, Because Notre Dame Teaches and Promotes Anti-Abortion Ideology?
No? Then how can government refuse to hire Georgetown alumni, so long as Georgetown "teach[es] and promote[s] DEI"?
Anti-American Speech and Spray-Painting "Allah, Muhammad" in Storage Locker Can Be Evidence of Motive …
in prosecution for bomb hoax at church; but spray-painting "the stupid Jew" in the storage locker isn't relevant enough, and thus isn't admissible. (Both the painted items were in defendant's native Kurdish.)
Tort Law vs. Privacy: Ride-Share Services May Have Duty to Prevent Anonymous Riders
So the Missouri Court of Appeals concludes, in allowing a negligence/design defect case to proceed against Lyft, based on a driver's having been murdered by riders who "fraudulently and anonymously request[ed]" a ride.
D.C. U.S. Attorney Drops Probe Over Sen. Schumer's 2020 Statements About Gorsuch and Kavanaugh
That's the correct decision, though I don't think there should even have been a question about it.
Punitive Damages Award in Mann v. Steyn Reduced from $1M to $5K,
largely because the compensatory damages were just $1.
Can Publicizing a Person's "Address and Physical Appearance" in Connection with True Allegations of Misconduct Be Actionable?
A federal magistrate judge flags the issue, though doesn't purport to resolve it.
More on Free Speech on Campus, Title VI, and Anti-Israel Speech
"[I]n seeking to hold Cooper Union liable for [students'] expression, [plaintiff] cannot help but say the quiet part loud: sweeping otherwise-protected political expression into the hostility analysis will create pressure on institutions 'to suppress speech to ensure compliance with Title VI,' causing 'regulated entities to adopt restrictive policies in an effort to avoid liability' for a hostile environment."
