In Carson v. Makin the U.S. Supreme Court held 6-3 that Maine’s refusal to provide tuition assistance payments to “sectarian” schools violates the First Amendment’s Free Exercise Clause.
Continue readingBoston Loses Third-Party Flag SCOTUS Case
In Shurtleff v. City of Boston the U.S. Supreme Court held unanimously that Boston’s refusal to fly a Christian flag on a flagpole outside city hall violated the First Amendment.
Continue readingStates and Local Governments Win SCOTUS Sign Case
In City of Austin, Texas v. Reagan National Advertising the U.S. Supreme Court held 6-3 that strict (fatal) scrutiny doesn’t apply to Austin allowing on-premises but not off-premises signs to be digitized.
Continue readingSLLC Files Supreme Court Brief in Praying High School Football Coach Case
In Kennedy v. Bremerton School District, former assistant football coach Joseph Kennedy and the school district disagree over precisely why he was put on administrative leave. According to Kennedy, he wanted to say a “brief, quiet prayer by himself while at school and visible to students.” According to the school district, “Kennedy made a spectacle of delivering midfield prayers at the immediate conclusion of games and insisted that students must be allowed to join.” The State and Local Legal Center (SLLC) amicus brief argues the First Amendment doesn’t protect Kennedy’s speech.
Continue readingSupreme Court Holds Censures Don’t Violate the First Amendment
unity College v. Wilson, the U.S. Supreme Court held that when a government board censures a member it doesn’t violate the First Amendment.
Continue readingJudge Brown Jackson and States and Local Governments
It is challenging to predict how Judge Brown Jackson might rule on issues of importance to states and local governments as a Supreme Court Justice.
Continue readingSupreme Court to Decide Case Involving Free Speech and a Non-Discrimination Statute
In 303 Creative v. Elenis the U.S. Supreme will decide whether applying a public-accommodation law to compel an artist to speak or stay silent violates the Free Speech Clause of the First Amendment.
Continue readingWhat Will Justice Breyer’s Retirement Mean for States and Local Governments
Justice Breyer will be remembered as a reliable liberal in the Court’s big, controversial cases, for his pragmatic worldview, and for his inquisitive, tireless, and at times dramatic persona at oral argument.
Continue readingJustice Breyer Allows Maine Vaccine Requirement to Stand
Justice Breuer rejected a challenge to Maine’s requirement that all healthcare workers be vaccinated against COVID-19.
Continue readingSupreme Court to Decide Government Speech Flag Case
The issue the Supreme Court will decide in Shurtleff v. City of Boston is whether flying a flag on a flagpole owed by a government entity is government speech. If it is, the city may refuse to fly a Christian flag.
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