Litigation
The Institute defends the freedoms of speech and of the press through strategic litigation designed to have a meaningful impact on the law, on public policy, and on public opinion. We litigate cases that have the potential to establish important new legal principles concerning the system of free expression, to influence the practices of powerful actors in that system, and to raise public awareness about contemporary structural threats to that system. We focus especially on complex and challenging cases that relate to new technology, including new communications platforms, and we favor cases that afford us the opportunity to draw on insights generated by our research program.
Our litigation prioritizes cases in our three focus areas, Free Speech & Social Media, Transparency & Democracy, and Privacy & Surveillance.
Featured
Northeast Organic Farming Association of New York v. USDA
A case challenging USDA’s purge of climate-related webpages.
LATEST NEWS & ANALYSIS
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Press Statement
Knight Institute and SMU Law Clinic Seek Immediate Release of Records Related to Texas School’s Use of Surveillance Technology
Say surveillance systems in schools undermine students’ privacy and expressive rights, government should release related public records
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Press Statement
Knight Institute and ACLU Urge Court to Construe Foreign Agent Registration Act Narrowly
Overbroad law has chilling effects on journalists, media organizations, and nonprofits
Our Docket
Showing 11–20 of 78
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Amicus Brief
United States v. Kamaldoss
A Second Circuit case addressing warrantless cellphone searches at the border
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Amicus Brief
University of Maryland Students for Justice in Palestine v. University of Maryland
A case challenging a public university’s blanket ban on expressive gatherings on October 7.
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Amicus Brief
United States v. Alisigwe
A Second Circuit case addressing warrantless cellphone searches at the border
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FOIA Lawsuit
Campaign for Accountability v. DOJ
A FOIA lawsuit seeking proactive disclosure of the Office of Legal Counsel’s secret legal opinions
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Amicus Brief
Armendariz v. City of Colorado Springs
A case challenging broad police searches of the digital devices of housing-rights advocates
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Amicus Brief
Iowa v. Securities Exchange Commission
Litigation challenging the SEC’s climate disclosure rule
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Amicus Brief
Lindke v. Freed
A Sixth circuit case addressing the application of the First Amendment to government officials’ social media accounts
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Lawsuit
The Texas Tribune v. Caldwell County
A case challenging the exclusion of the press and public from bail hearings in Caldwell County, Texas.
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Lawsuit
A.B.O. Comix v. San Mateo County
A lawsuit challenging the digitization and destruction of mail in San Mateo County’s jails
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Amicus Brief
Alario v. Knudsen
A Ninth Circuit appeal addressing a challenge to Montana’s TikTok ban.