No. 22-1147

Sandra Susan Merritt v. Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc., et al.

Lower Court: Ninth Circuit
Docketed: 2023-05-25
Status: Denied
Type: Paid
Experienced Counsel
Tags: defamation first-amendment fraud free-speech journalistic-investigation newsgathering rico rico-act
Key Terms:
SocialSecurity FirstAmendment Privacy
Latest Conference: 2023-09-26
Related Cases: 22-1159 (Vide) 22-1160 (Vide) 22-1168 (Vide)
Question Presented (AI Summary)

Whether the First Amendment's Free Speech Clause prevents the application of defamation liability and RICO to undercover newsgathering

Question Presented (OCR Extract)

QUESTIONS PRESENTED 1. Whether this Court’s decision in Hustler Magazine, Inc. v. Falwell, 485 U.S. 46 (1988), which precludes publication damages without meeting the constitutional requirements for defamation liability, prohibits a party from avoiding the First Amendment’s Free Speech limitations on defamation claims by using Cohen v. Cowles Media Co., 501 U.S. 663 (1991), to recover damages under “generally applicable” laws. 2. Whether the First Amendment’s Free Speech Clause prevents the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act, which was enacted to combat the infiltration of legitimate commercial enterprises by traditional “organized crime,” from being applied to undercover newsgathering journalists whose purpose is to document and expose what they reasonably believe to be unlawful conduct. 3. Whether the First Amendment’s Free Speech Clause protects newsgathering journalists, who operate under an alias to document and expose what they reasonably believe to be unlawful conduct, from being subjected to punitive liability for “fraud.”

Docket Entries

2023-10-02
Petition DENIED.
2023-09-06
DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 9/26/2023.
2023-09-05
2023-08-22
Brief of respondents Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc., et al. in opposition filed.
2023-06-21
Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is extended to and including August 23, 2023.
2023-06-20
Motion to extend the time to file a response from June 26, 2023 to August 23, 2023, submitted to The Clerk.
2023-05-23

Attorneys

Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc., et al.
William Collins PerdueArnold & Porter Kaye Scholer LLP, Respondent
William Collins PerdueArnold & Porter Kaye Scholer LLP, Respondent
Sandra Susan Merritt
Mathew D. Staver — Petitioner
Mathew D. Staver — Petitioner