Articles Posted in Free Speech

The First Amendment provides certain protections for freedom of speech and association to which government employees may be entitled despite the nature of their jobs.

On Friday, January 14, 2022, the United States Supreme Court granted a high school football coach's petition for a writ of certiorari. The court will hear the coach's case concerning postgame midfield prayers with players and coaches.

Two internet trade organizations have challenged a Texas law regulating social media companies’ ability to remove users from their platforms. The law, House Bill 20, was signed by Governor Greg Abbott earlier this month.

The United States Supreme Court ruled 8-1 in favor of protecting public school students' free speech rights on Wednesday, June 23, 2021, in Mahanoy Area School District v. B.L. The ruling expounds upon Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District, bringing student free speech jurisprudence into the internet era. "[S]ometimes it is necessary to protect the superfluous in order to preserve the necessary."

On Wednesday, the Facebook Oversight Board upheld former President Donald Trump’s January suspension from the platform, citing his creation of “an environment where a serious risk of violence was possible.”

The United States Supreme Court heard oral arguments today, April 28, 2021, in Mahanoy Area School District v. B.L. At issue in the case is whether the precedential case, Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District, applies to student speech that occurs off-campus.

The second impeachment trial of former President Donald Trump began this week in the Senate with Trump’s lawyers arguing in part that the former President’s statements are protected under the First Amendment as free speech.

On Thursday, January 7, the U.S. Supreme Court rejected a case by Republican Congressman Louie Gohmert asking it to prohibit Vice President Mike Pence from certifying the election results.

In a reversal, Facebook is increasing its enforcement against hate speech.

On Monday, August 17, 2020, Children's Health Defense filed a lawsuit against Facebook, Inc. in the U.S. District Court, Northern District of California. The lawsuit alleges that Facebook acted jointly or in concert with federal government agencies or actors to deny Children's Health Defense's First Amendment speech and Fifth Amendment property rights. At issue in the case is Facebook's use of fact-checking warning labels and Facebook's disabling of the fundraising feature on Children's Health Defense's Facebook page.