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
"I Was Just Kidding!" Assertion Can't Justify Dismissal of Libel Case
Def Noodles v. Keemstar.
Zelenskiy on Why He Stayed in Kiev
Perhaps an insight on how many courageous actions actually come about.
Does the First Amendment Bar Public Schools from Removing School Library Books Based on Their Viewpoints?
The Supreme Court split on this 4-4 in 1982, and the matter remains unsettled.
A Statute of Limitations Cautionary Tale, Here with Regard to Changing COVID-Related Tolling Rules
Take the No-Procrastination Pledge.
Is It Libelous to Accuse BDSM Participant of Having Hand Tremor and Vision Problems,
and thus not being able to safely participate in BDSM activities (presumably on the dominant side)?
Journal of Free Speech Law: "The Virtue of Tolerance in Hiring and Promotion by Private Institutions,"
by Prof. Peter de Marneffe (Ariz. State).
Having Jury Deliberate During Start of COVID Pandemic Didn't Deprive Murder Defendant of Fair Trial
The mentally ill defendant "testified and described how shooting white people was part of his divine, preordained mission to establish 'a kingdom of infinite peace and progress.'”
Copyright Office: No Copyright Protection for Certain AI-Generated Works
Law from the dawn of the dawn of the AI age.
AWDWIK & AWDWIKISI: What Do They Mean?
That's today's puzzle. No fair peeking!
S. Ct. Denies Review of Eighth Circuit En Banc Case Upholding Arkansas "Anti-BDS" Statute
The statute required no-boycott-of-Israel terms in Arkansas government contracts; the Eighth Circuit had held that the law doesn't violate the First Amendment.
Gonzalez v. Google Liveblog, in Progress
Moderated by Kate Klonick, with Mary Anne Franks, Mike Godwin, James Grimmelmann, Gus Hurwitz, Jeff Kosseff, Emma Llanso, Alan Rozenshtein, Benjamin Wittes, Jonathan Zittrain, and me.
No First Amendment Problem with Searching Records of E-Mail Account "PedoZack82@gmail.com,"
when the user had also posted a Match.com entry saying "MAP 4-10," and there was police testimony that "MAP" means "minor attracted person" and "4-10" was the age of the children in whom he was interested.
Private Gun Carriers' Self-Defense Against Public Shooters
The El Paso incident from a few days ago, the FBI 2021 statistics, and more.
Right of Access to Court Records Applies Even Absent Any Current "Substantial Public Interest in This Case"
"[P]ublic access is designed not only to allow the press and the public to follow high-profile cases, but also to permit ongoing and future access. Law students or legal scholars review case files for law review articles, attorneys review past cases when similar litigation arises, and litigation may be a source of information for policy-makers considering, for example, safety regulations or for journalists reporting more broadly on either the courts or the subject matter of particular litigation."
Public University Committee Members' Names Aren't Protected by the Right of Expressive Association
The University of Washington thus wasn't barred by the First Amendment from disclosing such names in response to a People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals public records request.
Private College Coaches' Flexibility to Eject Team Members Based on Condemnation by Teammates
"Coaches must generally consider a variety of factors—both objective and subjective—in managing a team, and these factors include concerns about distractions, team cohesion, and morale."
Plaintiffs "Played Spanish Music at Home"; Neighbors "Complained to the Police"; Tort Litigation Ensued
No success for the plaintiffs, at least at this stage.
Once Upon a Time in the California Court of Appeal
Quentin Tarantino's Once Upon a Time in Hollywood doesn't infringe 1960s actor Christopher Jones' right of publicity.
Prof. Cynthia Estlund (NYU) in the Journal of Free Speech Law on "Can Employees Have Free Speech Rights …
... Without Due Process Rights (in the Private Sector Workplace)?"