This Special Bulletin was authored by David Urban.
On March 21, 2019, the White House issued an Executive Order requiring federal agencies to withhold certain types of funds from higher education institutions that fail to comply with the First …
Tag Archives: “Free Speech”
Free Speech Rights at Private Colleges and Universities
Posted in First Amendment
The post was authored by David Urban.
Controversies over free speech, disruptive protests, sharp debates among faculty, withdrawal of invitations to controversial speakers, and interference with rights of expression happen just as much at private as at public colleges …
Government-Hosted Social Media – How To Avoid First Amendment Claims
Posted in Social Media
This post was authored by David Urban.
Social media and the First Amendment is a fascinating and quickly-developing area of the law. All types of business organizations have a social media presence, for example, a Twitter page or Facebook …
Supreme Court Agrees to Look Again at Mandatory Agency Shop Fees
Posted in Appeals, Constitutional Rights, First Amendment, Litigation, Public Sector
This post was authored by Amit Katzir
Last month, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to review Janus v. AFSCME, a case out of Illinois challenging the constitutionality of mandatory agency shop fees for public employees. Illinois, like California, is …
Public Employers and Hate Speech
Posted in Constitutional Rights, First Amendment, Legislation, Public Sector, Workplace Policies
Violent and tragic events in Charlottesville, and the intense national debate that followed, have put the issue of hate speech at the forefront of the public’s attention. A number of publications have addressed the issue of when a private employer …
U.S. Supreme Court Holds that a Public Employee Can Assert First Amendment Retaliation Claim Based on Employer Perceptions
Posted in First Amendment
On April 26, 2016, the U.S. Supreme Court decided that a public agency can incur liability for a First Amendment violation if it demotes or disciplines one of its employee based on the agency’s mistaken belief that the employee has …
Five First Amendment Issues to Watch in 2016 – Public Employment and Education
Posted in Education, Employment, First Amendment
An unprecedented number of protests – at educational institutions and in city streets – occurred nationwide last year, and protests continue to serve as focal points for public attention and debate going into 2016. The legal realm concerning free speech …
Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals Upholds Ban of Unattended Park Displays
Posted in First Amendment
Last week, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit upheld a Santa Monica City ordinance which prohibited unattended exhibits in Palisades Park, among them displays of the Nativity Scene, erected annually by the Santa Monica Nativity Scenes …
Campus Free Speech – A Review of Policies Can Avoid Litigation
Posted in Education, First Amendment
It has been 50 years since the Free Speech Movement began at UC Berkeley in 1964, and approximately 40-50 years since near-riotous conditions overwhelmed college campuses in the late 1960’s and early 1970’s. In our own time, it is about …
U.S. Supreme Court Issues New Public Employee Free Speech Decision – Compelled Employee Testimony Can Be Protected
Posted in First Amendment, Retaliation
On Thursday, June 19, 2014, the U.S. Supreme Court in Lane v. Franks held that the First Amendment protects a public employee who provides truthful sworn testimony, compelled by subpoena, outside the scope of his or her ordinary job responsibilities. …
Disciplining Public School Students For Speech: First Amendment Implications
Posted in Education, First Amendment
Many student discipline matters in public schools involve speech, be it joking threats by the student, outrageous bullying on social media, epithets or hate speech, or clothing containing messages or symbols that violate school rules. Because they involve speech, these …
The NLRB’s New Holding On Private Sector Free Speech (And What It Means For The Public Sector)
Posted in Employment, Social Media
Last month, the National Labor Relations Board, the federal agency overseeing private sector labor relations, issued its much anticipated decision in Karl Knauz Motors, Inc dba Knauz BMW and Robert Becker (“Knauz BMW”). The Board held that the …
The First Amendment In Public Employment And Education – Six Issues For The Year 2012
Posted in Education, First Amendment, Legislation
2012 promises to be a significant year for freedom of expression in America, not only because protest movements are expanding across the country in various forms, but also because 2012 is an election year. And, it will not be just …
Fifth Circuit Rules Cheerleader’s Free Speech Claims Were Not Frivolous
Posted in Constitutional Rights, Education, First AmendmentOn September 12, 2011, in John Doe and Jane Doe v. Silsbee Independent School District, the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in Texas ruled that a high school student will not be required to pay attorney’s fees …
The Ninth Circuit Decides “Religious Banners” Case On First Amendment Rights Of Public School Teachers
Posted in Education, First AmendmentThe U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, in Johnson v. Poway Unified School District, yesterday issued a decision that answers numerous questions bearing on the First Amendment free speech rights of high school teachers. At the core …
The Ninth Circuit And The “God Banners” Case”
Posted in Education, First Amendment
If you were a high school teacher, what posters and inspirational items would you put up in your classroom? What if at your school, “no posters” was not an option, and you were expected to make some personal statement to …
University’s Nondiscrimination Policy Does Not Violate Religiously-Exclusive Student Organizations’ Freedom Of Speech Or Association, Free Religious Exercise, Or Equal Protection
Posted in Education, First Amendment
Thanks to movies like Animal House and PCU, the word “fraternity” conjures up images of University sanctioned bastions of partying and pranks. The classic Hollywood formula often involves comedic attempts to win back University approval after the fraternity’s antics …