Explore 30 court opinions on First Amendment. AI-powered plain English summaries, key holdings, and legal analysis.
30 recent cases analyzed in this topic area.
Defamation plaintiff fails to prove actual malice for summary judgment
Cyril Wohrer v. Graeme Duncan, decided by Florida District Court of Appeal on April 21, 2026, resulted in a defendant win outcome. The plaintiff, Cyril Wohrer, sued the defendant, Graeme Duncan, for d...
Defamation claim fails due to lack of proven malice
William Welch v. Julie Jones, decided by Alabama Supreme Court on April 17, 2026, resulted in a defendant win outcome. The plaintiff, William Welch, sued the defendant, Julie Jones, for defamation. We...
Copyrighted photo in political ad ruled fair use
Marwan Mahajni v. Vu Do, decided by Seventh Circuit on April 13, 2026, resulted in a defendant win outcome. The Seventh Circuit affirmed the district court's denial of a preliminary injunction sought ...
Public Employee Speech Not Protected if Not Matter of Public Concern
Kenneth Karwacki v. Josh Kaul, decided by Seventh Circuit on April 2, 2026, resulted in a defendant win outcome. The Seventh Circuit affirmed the district court's denial of a preliminary injunction, f...
First Circuit Upholds Dismissal of Challenge to Puerto Rico Election Laws
Ocasio v. Comision Estatal de Elecciones, decided by First Circuit on April 1, 2026, resulted in a defendant win outcome. The First Circuit affirmed the district court's dismissal of a lawsuit challen...
Ninth Circuit Upholds South Dakota's Online Content Law Against First Amendment Challenge
Los Angeles Press Club v. Noem, decided by Ninth Circuit on April 1, 2026, resulted in a defendant win outcome. The Ninth Circuit affirmed the district court's dismissal of a lawsuit by the Los Angele...
Ninth Circuit Upholds "No-Contact" Rule in Domestic Violence Case
Alfonso Verduzco Ruiz v. Pamela Bondi, decided by Ninth Circuit on April 1, 2026, resulted in a defendant win outcome. The Ninth Circuit affirmed the district court's denial of a preliminary injunctio...
Appeals Court Upholds Defamation Ruling Against Barrett Gibbons
This case involves a dispute between Bryan Mick and Barrett Gibbons. Mick sued Gibbons, alleging that Gibbons had defamed him. Mick claimed that Gibbons made false statements about him that harmed his...
Eighth Circuit Upholds Public Indecency Law Against First Amendment Challenge
Get Loud Arkansas v. Cole Jester, decided by Eighth Circuit on March 31, 2026, resulted in a defendant win outcome. The Eighth Circuit affirmed the district court's denial of a preliminary injunction,...
Court Upholds State's Termination of Employee Alleging First Amendment Retaliation
This case involves Charles James Skolnick, who was a former employee of the State of Florida. Skolnick alleged that the State retaliated against him for exercising his First Amendment rights, specific...
Court Affirms Dismissal of Defamation Lawsuit for Failure to Adequately Plead Falsity and Harm
This case involves a dispute between Jeremy Skidmore and Michael Schinke. Skidmore sued Schinke, alleging that Schinke had defamed him. Skidmore claimed that Schinke made false statements about him th...
Inmate's Religious Diet and Retaliation Claims Against Prison Official Partially Revived by Eighth Circuit
This case involves Gregory Holt, an inmate, who sued Dexter Payne, a prison official, alleging that Payne violated his First Amendment rights by denying him a religious diet (kosher) and retaliating a...
Texas anti-BDS law upheld against First Amendment challenge by contractor
This case involves Rafael Pizana III, who sued Glenn Hegar (Comptroller) and Ken Paxton (Attorney General) of Texas. Pizana alleged that the state's "anti-BDS" law, which requires state contractors to...
Ninth Circuit Affirms Injunction Against Clark County School District's Student Speech Policy, Upholding First Amendment Rights
This case involves the American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada (ACLU) suing the Clark County School District (CCSD) over its policy regarding student speech, specifically the distribution of non-scho...
Voter's Challenge to Florida Ballot Order Statute Dismissed Due to Lack of Standing
This case involves Joaquin Avila, who sued Pamela Bondi, the Attorney General of Florida, alleging that Florida's ballot order statute violates the First Amendment. Avila, a voter, argued that placing...
Seventh Circuit Reverses Dismissal of DOJ Employee's First Amendment Retaliation Lawsuit, Remands for Further Review
This case involves Ryan Steinhoff, a former employee of the Wisconsin Department of Justice (DOJ), who sued his supervisor, Matthew Malovrh, alleging that Malovrh retaliated against him for exercising...
Appeals Court Reverses Summary Judgment, Allowing Former City Employee's First Amendment Retaliation Claim to Proceed
This case involves Daniel Grady, a former employee of the City of Wyoming, who sued his supervisor, John Cratsenburg, alleging that Cratsenburg violated his First Amendment rights by retaliating again...
Seventh Circuit Affirms Summary Judgment for Supervisor in First Amendment Retaliation Case
Norberto Torres, a former employee of the Illinois Department of Human Services (IDHS), sued his supervisor, Kent Brookman, alleging that Brookman retaliated against him for exercising his First Amend...
Seventh Circuit Affirms Summary Judgment for Supervisor in First Amendment Retaliation Case
Norberto Torres, a former employee of the Illinois Department of Corrections (IDOC), sued his supervisor, Kent Brookman, alleging that Brookman retaliated against him for exercising his First Amendmen...
Defamation claim fails for lack of malice
Teneca Hines v. Pleasana Davison, decided by Florida District Court of Appeal on March 18, 2026, resulted in a defendant win outcome. The plaintiff, Teneca Hines, sued the defendant, Pleasana Davison,...
Seventh Circuit Affirms Summary Judgment for IDOC Investigator, Finding No First Amendment Retaliation Against Former Employee
Anthony Boyce, a former employee of the Illinois Department of Corrections (IDOC), sued Ashley Cox, an IDOC investigator, alleging that Cox retaliated against him for exercising his First Amendment ri...
Settlement Agreement on Mortgage Payments Upheld
Renee Waters v. Beverley L. Farrar, decided by Florida District Court of Appeal on March 17, 2026, resulted in a defendant win outcome. This case concerns the interpretation of a settlement agreement ...
Seventh Circuit Affirms Summary Judgment for Douglas County in Age Discrimination and Retaliation Lawsuit
Christopher Raddant, a former employee of Douglas County, Wisconsin, sued the county alleging that his termination was a result of age discrimination and retaliation for protected activities, violatin...
Seventh Circuit Reverses Summary Judgment in IDOC Retaliation Case, Finding Factual Dispute on Employee's Protected Speech
This case involves John Hawkins, a former employee of the Illinois Department of Corrections (IDOC), who sued his supervisor, Mark Sevier, for retaliation under the First Amendment. Hawkins claimed th...
Appeals Court Reverses Summary Judgment, Orders Trial on Political Firing Claim for Illinois Corrections Employee
This case involves John Peterson, a former employee of the Illinois Department of Corrections (IDOC), who sued Douglas A. Collins, the Director of the IDOC, alleging that his termination was political...
Ninth Circuit Reverses Dismissal of LGBTQ+ Group's Lawsuit Against Montana AG Knudsen, Denies Prosecutorial Immunity
This case involves a dispute between the Imperial Sovereign Court of the State of Montana (ISCSOM), an LGBTQ+ advocacy organization, and Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen. The ISCSOM sought to r...
Texas Court Limits Attorney General's Investigation into Pflag's Support for Gender-Affirming Care
This case involves a legal dispute between the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) and Pflag, Inc., a non-profit organization that supports LGBTQ+ individuals and their families. The OAG issued a req...
Georgia appeals court strikes down vague city noise ordinance
CITY OF MILTON v. CHANG, decided by Georgia Supreme Court on March 12, 2026, resulted in a defendant win outcome. The City of Milton sued Chang for violating a city ordinance that prohibited "any pers...
Appeals Court Reverses Qualified Immunity for Supervisor in Retaliation Lawsuit, Allowing Case to Proceed
This case involves Scot Gaither, a former employee of the City of Memphis, who sued his supervisor, Tim Lane, alleging that Lane retaliated against him for reporting a hostile work environment. Gaithe...
Tenth Circuit Reverses Summary Judgment for City on Police Officer's First Amendment Retaliation Claim, Affirms for Individual Officers
This case involved a former police officer, Armendariz, who sued the City of Colorado Springs and several individual defendants, alleging various claims including violations of his First Amendment rig...