Today our firm filed its second amicus brief in a challenge to the most sweeping Fourth Amendment violations ever committed by the U.S. government. (Our last brief was filed over four years ago.) This suit seeks to stop three different mass surveillance programs operated by the federal government — programs which have seized Internet (email, internet searches, etc.) and telephone communications
Bump Stocks: Gun Owners of America v. Barr — Reply Brief
Today we filed our reply brief in the Sixth Circuit challenge to the ATF bumpstock regulations brought by Gun Owners of America. The issue is the district court’s refusal to issue a preliminary injunction to stop the ATF from declaring bump stocks contraband, by classifying them as machine guns.
Remington Arms v. Soto
Today we filed our second amicus brief in the defense of a firearms manufacturer who was sued in Connecticut after the Sandy Hook shooting. Our prior brief was in the Connecticut Supreme Court. This brief supports the manufacturer’s effort to obtain review by the U.S. Supreme Court. Most of the plaintiffs’ theories were rejected by the Connecticut Supreme Court, but it allowed the case to proceed based on advertising that supposedly would have appealed to young males to conduct shootings. Our brief explains why the Connecticut Court erred in its creation of a huge exception to the federal Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act, a statute designed specifically to protect firearms manufacturers and dealers from suits such as this one.
The Advocate — Our Amicus Brief draws fire from the Homosexual Press
The homosexual website Advocate had some nice words about our amicus brief in Harris Funeral Homes v. EEOC.
DHS v. Regents of the University of California
Today we file our fourth amicus brief in support of President Trump’s authority to rescind President Obama’s unconstitutional DACA policy. Finally, the U.S. Supreme Court chose to review the lower court orders which have prevented President Trump from changing policy, and we address the issues in our merits amicus brief. We explain why the decision to end DACA was not judicially reviewable, and that DACA itself was unlawful. Our prior briefs were filed February 2, 2018 in the U.S. Supreme Court, March 14, 2018 in the Second Circuit, and December 6, 2018 in the U.S. Supreme Court.
Bostock v. Clayton County & Altitude Express v. Zarda
Today we filed our third amicus brief in support of Altitude Express from a case brought by a homosexual skydiving instructor who was fired for speaking inappropriately at work about his sexual orientation. The Altitude Express case has been consolidated with a case from the Eleventh Circuit — Bostock. As in the Harris Funeral Case, we explain that Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Ac does not apply to sexual orientation.
Harris Funeral Homes v. EEOC
Today we filed our third amicus brief in support of a Christian employer, Harris Funeral Homes, against a case brought by a male who demanded his employer allow him to dress like a woman. We explained why Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act could never be interpreted to apply to such claims.
The “Con-Con” Con: The Dangerous Proposal for States to Apply for an Article V Constitutional Convention
Today, Bill Olson and Herb Titus co-authored a paper explaining the serious dangers associated with the calling of an Article V Constitutional Convention. The paper addressed two false premises underlying the proposal: 1. The problem of big government is found in the text of the U.S. Constitution, which can be corrected by changing the words of the document. 2. The only remedy to the problem of
Citizens United v. Department of State — Opposition & Reply
Our FOIA suit for Citizens United to obtain additional documents about the Christopher Steele briefing at the State Department concerning the Steele Dossier on October 11, 2016 continues. Today we filed our Memorandum in Opposition to the State Department’s Motion for Summary Judgment together with our Reply to the State Department’s Opposition to our Motion for Summary Judgment.
Also filed today was Exhibit A to our filing, which consists of documents recently released by the State Department on July 5, 2019.
Lastly, we filed our Statement of Genuine Issues.
Veronica Price v. City of Chicago
Today our firm filed its second amicus brief challenging the City of Chicago’s “bubble zone” ordinance, designed to prevent pro-life sidewalk counselors from speaking to pregnant women at the last opportunity before they enter an abortion clinic. As we did in our first brief in the Seventh Circuit, we argue here that this case should be handled not as an abortion rights case, but
Article: Health Care of Thousands in CT at Stake as Court Set to Hear ACA Case
The CT Mirror carried a story discussing the ramifications of the Fifth Circuit Obamacare case Texas v. United States. The article quoted our amicus brief, filed May 8, 2019.
Bump Stocks: Gun Owners of America v. Barr — Brief for Appellants
Today we filed our opening brief in the Sixth Circuit case of Gun Owners of America v. Barr — challenging the district court’s refusal to issue a preliminary injunction to stop the ATF total ban on the private ownership of bump stocks.
Johnson v. United States
Today we filed an amicus brief urging the U.S. Supreme Court to re-examine its Terry v. Ohio, stop-and-frisk doctrine. Although Terry stop and frisks were limited to a search for weapons, in this case one was used to justify seizing a bullet. Since that decision in 1968, both Fourth and Second Amendment law has changed. The property basis of the Fourth Amendment has been re-established, and the
Citizens United v. Department of State — Motion for Summary Judgement
Today we filed a motion for summary judgment, memorandum of points and authorities, and two proposed orders in a FOIA case seeking records on an October 11, 2016 briefing which Christopher Steele gave at the State Department concerning his Steele dossier. This is the case in which the State Department released never-before-seen Kavalec emails proving that the FBI was on notice that the Steele
Justice Thomas Cites Our Amicus Brief in Explaining Tie Between Abortion and Eugenics
Today the Supreme Court issued an order in a case in which we had filed an amicus brief — Commissioner v. Planned Parenthood of Indiana. Justice Thomas wrote a concurring opinion, referencing both our amicus brief (at 18) and several of the authorities that we cited in our
New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. City of New York (Merits)
Today we filed our second amicus brief in support of a challenge to New York City’s near prohibition on transporting firearms. This is the first Second Amendment case that the U.S. Supreme Court has heard since Heller (2008) and McDonald (2010). Our brief details the lower courts’ open prejudice against gun rights and its disregard for the Supreme Court’s protection of Second
State of Texas v. United States
Today our firm filed our ninth amicus brief opposing Obamacare. This briefs supports challenge to Obamacare brought by the State of Texas and other states based on the fact it is unconstitutional since the penalty for the individual mandate was zeroed out by Congress in December 2017. Earlier, we filed the only amicus brief supporting the Texas challenge in district court in Texas. This brief
FOIA Bombshell Disclosure — CU v. U.S. Department of State
Today we obtained for Citizens United, from FOIA litigation against the State Department, key documents concerning the FISA Warrants against Trump Campaign workers. For the first time, these documents demonstrate that even before the first FISA Application was filed, the FBI and Justice Department were on notice that the Steele dossier was unverifiable, contained errors, was politically generated,
Doe v. Woodard
Today our firm filed an amicus brief involving a challenge to a Fourth Amendment violation by a social worker who strip-searched a four-year-old girl, without consent of the child or her mother, in search of tell-tale signs of child abuse. The Tenth Circuit dismissed the case, ruling that the social worker was not liable under the Supreme Court’s doctrine of qualified immunity. Our brief argues for limitations on the qualified immunity doctrine, and explains why the doctrine does not apply in this case.
FOIA: Public Advocate of the United States v. U.S. Department of Justice
On April 9, 2019, we filed suit on behalf of Public Advocate of the United States against the U.S. Department of Justice seeking to obtain certain records that the Department refused to disclose. Specifically, Public Advocate sought “copies of all records demonstrating compliance or noncompliance with the DOJ’s implementation of the Sessions USA Memo directive to appoint [religious liberty]
Bump Stocks: Reply Brief on Emergency Motion in SCOTUS
The Supreme Court allowed us to file a reply to the government’s opposition to our motion for an emergency stay of the ATF bump stock ban, which we filed at noon today.
Bump Stocks: Emergency Application for Stay by SCOTUS Pending Appellate Review
Today our firm filed an emergency application for stay with the U.S. Supreme Court (directed to Justice Sotomayor, Circuit Justice for the Sixth Circuit), requesting that the Court stay the effective date of the ATF’s Final Rule banning bump stocks pending review of the case by the Sixth Circuit.
Bump Stocks: GOA Files 28(j) Letter in Sixth Circuit
Today our firm filed a 28(j) letter with the Sixth Circuit, citing additional information in the D.C. Circuit cases of Guedes and Codrea. We point out that although the courts have issued stays in these and similar cases, the stays only apply to the specific appellants in each case, and do not grant the nationwide relief to bump stock owners being sought by Gun Owners of America, et al.
Bump Stocks: GOA Replies to Government Opposition
At 5:00 today, the Justice Department opposed our petition for emergency relief in the Sixth Circuit. At 10:30 tonight, we filed our reply to their opposition. The Sixth Circuit granted leave to file our reply brief.
Bump Stocks: Emergency Petition for Writ of Mandamus Filed in Sixth Circuit
The ATF reclassification of bump stocks as machineguns will take effect on Tuesday, March 26. The federal district court in which we challenged this classification change has yet to rule on our motion for an injunction. Therefore, we were forced to file this emergency petition in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit.