There have been numerous cases lately regarding what records should be considered public versus private when public officials or funds are involved. Here's an interesting corner of that larger question: have you ever wondered if large private donations to public...
Have you ever been served a DMCA Takedown Notice? This legal tool was created by the Digital Millennium Copyright Act in 1998 to protect intellectual property on the internet. But decades down the road, we’ve seen that some internet users experience DMCA abuse –...
We know that the Supreme Court overturning of Roe v. Wade affects abortion rights throughout the nation. But is abortion speech protected by the First Amendment even if it’s banned in certain states? The new state-by-state nature of abortion law is what renders...
Even though case law is well settled, the debate over the filming of police as a First Amendment right continues. The 10th Circuit Court of Appeals recently reinstated a lawsuit, ruling that civilian videos of police are protected by the constitution: “[The...
Are you allowed to read the private texts and emails of public officials? Absolutely, if they count as public records. With the advent of smartphones and laptops, personal devices have become entangled with official communications, and government devices have become...
Most free-speech cases are complicated. For instance, a case regarding free speech in Yakima, WA rests on the intersection of protection against discrimination and public safety. A local furniture business owner sued the city and several public employees, alleging...
I have posted about anti-SLAPP laws. SLAPP stands for Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation. Often brought by public figures or organizations with greater power and resources, anti-SLAPP lawsuits are filed with the unstated purpose of silencing critical...
Since the 2020 elections, public records requests to elections agencies have increased exponentially. Elections officials say that people who believe they will find evidence of voter and election fraud have caused the increase. Elections officials say the increased...