No. 22-175

Steven M. Recht, et al. v. Patrick Morrisey, Attorney General of West Virginia

Lower Court: Fourth Circuit
Docketed: 2022-08-25
Status: Denied
Type: Paid
Amici (1)Response RequestedResponse WaivedRelisted (2) Experienced Counsel
Tags: circuit-split commercial-speech disclaimer-requirements due-process first-amendment legal-advertising misleading-advertising professional-regulation speech-restrictions
Key Terms:
FirstAmendment JusticiabilityDoctri
Latest Conference: 2022-12-09 (distributed 2 times)
Question Presented (AI Summary)

Whether a State may redefine a well-established term and then ban its use as misleading

Question Presented (OCR Extract)

QUESTIONS PRESENTED Applying a version of commercial-speech doctrine that heavily deferred to legislative choices, which ignoring other requirements in this Court’s decisions, the Fourth Circuit held a new West Virginia statute could ban certain words from use only by attorneys who advertise for drug and medical-device cases, while also imposing lengthy disclaimer requirements that prevent advertising in common media, crediting articles cited in a brief’s footnote as evidence without scrutinizing the articles. This case presents three questions: 1. Whether, in conflict with decisions in the Fifth, Sixth, and Eleventh Circuits, a State may redefine the meaning a federally defined and well-established term and then ban its use as inherently and actually misleading? 2. Whether, in conflict with decisions in the First, Second, Fifth, Tenth, and Eleventh Circuit, but consistent with the Sixth Circuit, a State may meet its burden to justify and show that a restriction on commercial speech advances its interests with reasonable fit without introducing evidence into the record, and rely on material cited in a footnote to a brief, including a lobbying booklet, all of which is of questionable validity and some of which ontradicts the State’s claims? ii 3. Whether, in conflict with at least five other circuits, a State may impose on lawyers who advertise for drug and medical device cases without offending the unduly burdensome standard, a series of disclaimers that take up the full 30 seconds of a radio or television advertisement and prevent use of other media, and include among those disclaimers non-factual and controversial statements that are not related to the legal services being offered?

Docket Entries

2022-12-12
Petition DENIED.
2022-11-22
DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 12/9/2022.
2022-11-18
2022-11-07
Brief of respondent Patrick Morrisey, Attorney General of West Virginia in opposition filed.
2022-09-30
Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is extended to and including November 7, 2022.
2022-09-28
Motion to extend the time to file a response from October 24, 2022 to November 7, 2022, submitted to The Clerk.
2022-09-22
Response Requested. (Due October 24, 2022)
2022-09-21
2022-08-31
DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 9/28/2022.
2022-08-30
Waiver of right of respondent Patrick Morrisey to respond filed.
2022-08-22
Petition for a writ of certiorari filed. (Response due September 26, 2022)

Attorneys

Pacific Legal Foundation
Deborah Joyce La FetraPacific Legal Foundation, Amicus
Deborah Joyce La FetraPacific Legal Foundation, Amicus
Patrick Morrisey
Lindsay Sara SeeOffice of the West Virginia Attorney General, Respondent
Lindsay Sara SeeOffice of the West Virginia Attorney General, Respondent
Steven M. Recht, et al.
Robert S. PeckCenter for Constitutional Litigation, PC, Petitioner
Robert S. PeckCenter for Constitutional Litigation, PC, Petitioner