Topic
First Amendment Retaliation
25 published works
The Employer Handbook Blog
The Comparator Problem: What This Teacher’s Case Gets Wrong About Religious Discrimination
A teacher gets twice the students, a warning for observing a religious holiday, and a misconduct investigation after venting on a union Facebook page. She loses every claim. TL;DR: A…
Wait A Second!
No speech retaliation claim where prison doctor criticized medication policy
By secondcircuitcivilrightsblogsecondcircuitcivilrig
First Amendment retaliation litigation has never been the same ever since the Supreme Court held in 2006 that it's not protected speech if the government worker speaks out pursuant to…
Appellate Advocacy Blog
When Neutral Rules Aren’t Neutral:
How Appellate Courts Should Evaluate Pretext Without Becoming Factfinders Appellate courts are understandably cautious when constitutional claims turn on motive. The concern is familiar: probing intent risks entangling appellate judges…
Wait A Second!
Free speech retaliation claim fails as speculative
By secondcircuitcivilrightsblogsecondcircuitcivilrig
The plaintiff sued his employer, the Onondaga County Sheriff's Department, under the First Amendment, claiming he was disciplined for speaking out: that another officer was having a sexual relationship with…
Law of the Land
Fed. Dist. Ct. in FL Denies Motion to Dismiss Regarding First Amendment Retaliation Claim Against a Town Council Member who Allegedly Made False Statements During a Public Council Meeting
This post was authored by Luke Jenkins, Jacob D. Fuchsberg Touro Law Center Plaintiffs, an LLC and its managing member brought suit against the Town of Southwest Ranches (Town) and…
Municipal Minute
Seventh Circuit Allows First Amendment Retaliation Case to Continue
The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals recently allowed a lawsuit filed by a deputy sheriff of a county sheriff's department who claimed he was retaliated against for exercising his First…
Constitutional Law Prof Blog
Ninth Circuit Says Police Chief’s Private Texts Aren’t Protected Speech
The Ninth Circuit today rejected a First Amendment retaliation claim by a police chief who was forced to resign after sending private texts with a forwarded racist image. The court…
Legal Profession Blog
Motivation Knowledge Does Not Trigger Statute Of Limitations
The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of claims brought for the search of an attorney's Facebook private page on statute of limitations grounds.In…
Municipal Minute
No Qualified Immunity for Commissioner who Displays Rifle During Speaker’s Public Comment
A 6th Circuit Court of Appeals allowed a First Amendment retaliation case against a county commissioner to move forward where one of the commissioners displayed a high-powered rifle while a…
The Right Coast
Verdict Against Auburn University in Economics Professor’s First Amendment Retaliation Lawsuit
Fast forward a half century later to Lee County, Alabama, where Plaintiff Michael L. Stern, Ph.D. a tenured economics professor at Auburn University had gained a reputation as a vocal…