No. 21-120

James Tracy v. Florida Atlantic University Board of Trustees, et al.

Lower Court: Eleventh Circuit
Docketed: 2021-07-28
Status: Denied
Type: Paid
Tags: academic-freedom content-based content-based-restriction due-process first-amendment free-speech public-employment vagueness vagueness-doctrine viewpoint-discrimination
Key Terms:
AdministrativeLaw Arbitration FirstAmendment LaborRelations JusticiabilityDoctri
Latest Conference: 2021-12-03
Question Presented (AI Summary)

Whether FAU's reporting policy is unconstitutionally vague, impermissibly chills speech, and may be facially challenged because it grants the public university unbridled discretion to engage in content-based viewpoint discrimination against employees like Professor Tracy?

Question Presented (OCR Extract)

QUESTION PRESENTED Florida Atlantic University has a reporting policy that requires its faculty and staff to disclose outside professional activities to the university so that it may determine whether those activities constitute a conflict of interest. FAU used that policy as purported justification to terminate Professor James Tracy for not “disclosing” a notorious and widely criticized personal blog, which questioned the veracity of the Sandy Hook massacre narrative depicted by the government and the media. FAU’s reporting policy incoherently defines professional practice as both compensated and uncompensated activity, does not make any reference to blogging or social media use, and was applied to Professor Tracy even though the policy had never been applied to require the reporting of personal blogs by any of the dozens of other FAU professors who maintain blogs or social media sites. The question presented is: Whether FAU’s reporting policy is unconstitutionally vague, impermissibly chills speech, and may be facially challenged because it grants the public university unbridled discretion to engage in content-based viewpoint discrimination against employees like Professor Tracy?

Docket Entries

2021-12-06
Petition DENIED.
2021-11-09
DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 12/3/2021.
2021-11-04
Reply of petitioner James Tracy filed.
2021-10-26
Brief of respondents Florida Atlantic University Board of Trustees, et al. in opposition filed.
2021-08-12
Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is extended to and including October 26, 2021.
2021-08-09
Motion to extend the time to file a response from August 27, 2021 to October 26, 2021, submitted to The Clerk.
2021-07-26
Petition for a writ of certiorari filed. (Response due August 27, 2021)

Attorneys

Florida Atlantic University Board of Trustees, et al.
Jack J. AielloGunster Yoakley et al., Respondent
Jack J. AielloGunster Yoakley et al., Respondent
James Tracy
Enrique D. AranaCarlton Fields, P.A., Petitioner
Enrique D. AranaCarlton Fields, P.A., Petitioner