Institute For Free Speech

Free Speech Arguments

Presented by the Institute for Free Speech

The Free Speech Arguments Podcast brings you oral arguments from important First Amendment free political speech cases across the country. Find us on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

Episode 20: Moms for Liberty v. Wilson County Board of Education

Moms for Liberty – Wilson County, TN, et al. v. Wilson County Board of Education, et al., argued before Circuit Judges Jane Branstetter Stranch, Amul R. Thapar, and Eric E. Murphy in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit on October 29, 2024. Argued by Brett R. Nolan, Senior Attorney, Institute for Free Speech (on behalf of Moms for Liberty – Wilson County, TN, et al.) and Christopher C. Hayden (on behalf of the Wilson County Board of Education, et al.).

*Note: a full transcript of the argument may be found under “resources” at the bottom of the page

Statement of Issues, from the Opening Brief for the Appellants:

1. Whether Plaintiffs are likely to succeed on their claim that the Wilson County Board of Education’s policy requiring that speakers announce their address during the Board’s public-comment period violates the First Amendment.

2. Whether Plaintiffs are likely to succeed on their claim that the Wilson County Board of Education’s policy prohibiting “abusive” speech during its public-comment period violates the First Amendment.

3. Whether Plaintiffs are likely to succeed on their claim that the Wilson County Board of Education’s requirement that individuals who want to speak on non-agenda items during the public-comment period prove their comments are “in the public interest” violates the First Amendment.

4. Whether the Wilson County Board of Education’s partial voluntary cessation moots Plaintiffs’ challenges to the Board’s policies.

5. Whether the Wilson County Board of Education’s partial voluntary cessation prevents a finding of irreparable harm.

6. Whether Plaintiffs are entitled to a preliminary injunction against the address rule, the abusive-speech rule, and the public-interest rule.

Resources:

(Note: The transcript was automatically generated from Apple Podcasts. We have added speaker names, but the transcript has not been verified by a human. Please excuse any typos or inaccuracies resulting from the automatically generated transcription.)

Listen to the argument here:

     

Episode 19: Central Maine Power Company, et al. v. Maine Commission on Governmental Ethics and Election Practices, et al., argued before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit on October 9, 2024.
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Episode 18: Little, et al. v. Llano County, et al., argued en banc before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit on September 24, 2024.
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Episode 17: TikTok Inc. v. Merrick Garland, argued before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit on September 16, 2024.
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Episode 16: NetChoice, LLC v. Bonta, argued before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit on July 17, 2024.
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Episode 15: X Corp. v. Bonta, argued before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit on July 17, 2024.
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Episode 14: The Imperial Sovereign Court of the State of Montana v. Knudsen, argued before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit on June 4, 2024.
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Episode 13: Can You Be Punished for Sharing Publicly Broadcast Court Hearings (Somberg v. McDonald), argued before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit on June 12, 2024.
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Episode 12: Florida’s STOP Woke Act in Higher Education (Pernell v. Lamb), argued before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit on June 14, 2024.
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Episode 11: National Republican Senatorial Committee, et al. v. Federal Election Commission, et al., argued before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit sitting en banc on June 12, 2024. 
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Episode 10: U.S. v. Sittenfeld, argued before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit on May 9, 2024
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Episode 9: Diei v. Boyd, argued before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit on May 2, 2024.
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Episode 8: Spectrum WT v. Wendler, argued before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit on April 29, 2024.
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Episode 7: Joseph W. Fischer v. United States, argued before the Supreme Court of the United States on April 16, 2024.
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Episode 6: U.S. v. Mackey, argued before the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit on April 5, 2024.
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Episode 5: Gilliam v. Gerregano, argued before the Supreme Court of Tennessee on April 3, 2024.
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Episode 4: Gonzalez v. Trevino, argued before the Supreme Court of the United States on March 20, 2024.
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Episode 3: Murthy v. Missouri, argued before the Supreme Court of the United States on March 18, 2024.
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Episode 2: NRA v. Vullo, argued before the Supreme Court of the United States on March 18, 2024.
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Episode 1: Moody v. NetChoice, LLC and NetChoice, LLC v. Paxton, argued before the Supreme Court of the United States on February 26, 2024
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