First Amendment

Law prof at public university suspended for Charlie Kirk comments; does that violate First Amendment?

Online comments about the death of political activist Charlie Kirk have led to the suspension of an assistant clinical education professor at the University of Arkansas Little Rock William H. Bowen School of Law.

Sep 18, 2025 12:44 PM CDT

Trump files defamation and libel lawsuit against New York Times

President Donald Trump filed a defamation lawsuit Monday against the New York Times and four of its reporters, accusing the newspaper of libeling him in several articles in the lead-up to last year’s presidential election.

Sep 16, 2025 11:16 AM CDT

Court is not ‘enforcement division’ for ‘Miss Manners,’ concurring judge says as discipline case is tossed

The Kansas Supreme Court has rejected a recommended censure against a former district attorney who issued a press release questioning a chief judge’s statements about a plan to host jury trials at the county fairgrounds during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Sep 3, 2025 12:35 PM CDT

Discarding mail-in ballots in Pennsylvania violated voters’ constitutional rights, 3rd Circuit rules

A Pennsylvania law requiring election officials to toss mail-in ballots if they contain missing or incorrect dates impermissibly burdens the constitutional right to vote, the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals at Philadelphia ruled Tuesday.

Aug 28, 2025 2:34 PM CDT

Texas Showdown: Legal battle looming over Ten Commandments in schools

With a new state law set to kick in Monday requiring the Ten Commandments be displayed in every public classroom in Texas, many school districts this week are scrambling to figure out what to do. Some are holding off following a federal judge’s recent ruling against the mandate. Others are racing to fundraise for donated posters of the commandments.

Aug 27, 2025 8:43 AM CDT

Trump’s flag-burning order tests a Supreme Court ruling; here’s how

The Supreme Court ruled in a 5-4 judgment in 1989 that burning the U.S. flag as a form of protest is a constitutionally protected right under the First Amendment. President Donald Trump in his Monday executive order urged Attorney General Pam Bondi to find a case that could challenge that ruling. Here’s what to know about the legality of flag-burning in the United States.

Aug 26, 2025 11:06 AM CDT

First Amendment likely protects student drag show at West Texas A&M, 5th Circuit says

A federal appeals court has ruled for an LGBTQ+ student group and two of its leaders who contended that their First Amendment rights were violated when officials at West Texas A&M University canceled a charity drag performance show on campus.

Aug 21, 2025 11:04 AM CDT

Fewer will qualify for student loan forgiveness under proposed new guidelines; will sanctuary jurisdictions be disqualified?

Proposed changes to the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program published Monday would revoke eligibility for borrowers working for nonprofit and government organizations deemed to have a “substantial illegal purpose,” a term with a broad definition.

Aug 19, 2025 12:05 PM CDT

Once-jailed county clerk asks Supreme Court to overturn right to same-sex marriage

A county clerk in Kentucky who refused to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn its 2015 decision finding that same-sex marriage is a constitutional right.

Aug 13, 2025 12:08 PM CDT

ABA House adopts policy on law firm intimidation, immigration issues

The American Bar Association House of Delegates adopted more than 50 policy matters, including one on law firm intimidation, several on immigration enforcement and detention, and resolutions on academic freedom and open, civil debate at universities when it met during the 2025 ABA Annual Meeting.

Aug 12, 2025 12:54 PM CDT

US will appeal decision finding punitive executive order against Jenner & Block violates First Amendment

The federal government on Monday filed notice that it will appeal a federal judge’s decision blocking a punitive executive order against Jenner & Block that threatened its employees’ security clearances and put its clients’ government contracts at risk.

Jul 22, 2025 9:42 AM CDT

Mandatory reporting law includes conversations from confession if child abuse is suspected

Is a new Washington state law, which requires priests to report suspected child abuse or neglect, including information from confessions, an assault on the Catholic Church and thousands of years of religious doctrine and practice? That’s what the U.S. Justice Department says, asserting that it won’t sit “idly by when states mount attacks on the free exercise of religion.”

Jul 21, 2025 9:23 AM CDT

Public-school students don’t have ‘supercharged right’ to be taught critical race theory, 8th Circuit says

Students challenging a ban on the teaching of critical race theory in Arkansas public schools are unlikely to succeed in their First Amendment challenge to the law, a federal appeals court ruled Wednesday. The St. Louis-based 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals allowed enforcement of the law in a July…

Jul 18, 2025 7:30 AM CDT

Transgender teacher likely to fail in First Amendment challenge to Florida pronouns law, 11th Circuit says

A federal appeals court has ruled against a teacher who challenged a Florida law barring K-12 public school employees from communicating their preferred pronouns to students in the classroom if they don’t comport with their sex assigned at birth.

Jul 7, 2025 11:40 AM CDT

Chemerinsky: Supreme Court’s term was all about taking sides on the ideological divide

The court’s October 2024 term, which ended June 27, presented a number of cases that posed politically controversial issues concerning the aspects of the culture wars and challenges to the actions of President Donald Trump.

Jul 2, 2025 9:00 AM CDT