Category: Speech vs. Conduct

SUPREME COURT OPINION ALERT: High Court Rules in Favor of Cake Baker in Same-Sex Wedding Case

Today, the Supreme Court decided Masterpiece Cakeshop, which involves whether a cake baker can be forced to bake a cake for a same-sex couple’s wedding.  (We previewed the case here.)  In a 7-2 decision, in an opinion written by Justice Kennedy, the Court ruled in favor of the cake shop and found that the Colorado… Read More SUPREME COURT OPINION ALERT: High Court Rules in Favor of Cake Baker in Same-Sex Wedding Case

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California’s Credit-Card Surcharge Law Held Unconstitutional

Credit-card companies charge retailers a small percentage of every transaction paid for with a credit card.  Understandably, retailers can before frustrated by these charges and want to pass on the charges to consumers who choose to pay with credit cards. California—concerned that some consumers might be deceived by retailers who don’t clearly notify consumers of… Read More California’s Credit-Card Surcharge Law Held Unconstitutional

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Ohio Okay to Require Disclosure of HIV-Positive Status Before Sex

Orlando Batista had sex with his girlfriend and did not tell her that he was HIV positive, which he knew that he was.  Two months later, she learned from one of his family members  that he had HIV.  Unsurprisingly, she was not happy.  That’s when the police got involved.  Batista was charged with felony assault… Read More Ohio Okay to Require Disclosure of HIV-Positive Status Before Sex

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Chicago May Ban Women from Exposing Breasts in Public

In August 2014, Sonoko Tagami was in Chicago participating in GoTopless Day—an annual celebration of women’s suffrage.  The police cited her for violating a city ordinance prohibiting public nudity. The City of Chicago’s public-nudity ordinance is quite specific.  It prohibits appearing in public “in such a manner that the genitals, vulva, pubis, pubic hair, buttocks, perineum, anus,… Read More Chicago May Ban Women from Exposing Breasts in Public

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New York Law Prohibiting Surcharges for Credit-Card Users Might Violate the First Amendment

So this was not a full-blown First Amendment case, but it involved an important question that courts sometimes have to answer in First Amendment cases: is the government regulating speech or conduct? (Generally speaking, speech is protected by the First Amendment and conduct is not.) Expressions Hair Design is a company that specializes in…well you… Read More New York Law Prohibiting Surcharges for Credit-Card Users Might Violate the First Amendment

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