Free Speech Arguments

Episode 51 :  Perkins Coie LLP v. Department of Justice Perkins Coie LLP v. Department of Justice , argued before Chief Judge Sri Srinivasan, Judge Cornelia T.L. Pillard, and Judge Neomi Rao of the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit on May 14, 2026. Argued by Paul Clement (on behalf of the Law Firm Appellees), Abbe Lowell (on behalf of Appellee Mark Zaid), and Abhishek Kambli (on...

Episode 50 :  The Buckeye Institute v. Internal Revenue Service The Buckeye Institute v. Internal Revenue Service , argued before Senior Judge R. Guy Cole, Jr., Judge Richard Allen Griffin, and Judge Chad A. Readler of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit on April 29, 2026. Argued by Institute for Free Speech Senior Attorney Brett Nolan (on behalf of The Buckeye Institute) and...

Episode 48 : Media Matters for America (MMFA) v. Federal Trade Commission   Media Matters for America v. Federal Trade Commission , argued before Judges Patricia A. Millett, Robert L. Wilkins, and Gregory G. Katsas of the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit on April 13, 2026. Argued by Nathaniel A.G. Zelinsky (on behalf of Media Matters of America) and H. Thomas Byron, III (on beha...

Episode 47 : Hussey v. City of Cambridge, et al. Hussey v. City of Cambridge, et al.  argued  en banc  before the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit on April 8, 2026. Argued by Jack Bartholet (on behalf of Brian Hussey) and Robert M. Loeb (on behalf of the City of Cambridge officials).   Case Summary, from the  Appellants’ Opening Brief :  “This case raises fundamental questions...

Episode 46 : Utah Political Watch, et al. v. Musselman, et al.   Utah Political Watch, et al. v. Musselman, et al.  argued before Judge Timothy M. Tymkovich, Senior Judge Michael R. Murphy, and Judge Robert E. Bacharach of the United States Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit on March 17, 2026. Argued by Institute for Free Speech Senior Attorney Charles “Chip” Miller (on behalf of Utah Political...

Episode 45: The Enduring Legacy of Buckley v. Valeo January 30, 2026, marked the 50th anniversary of the Supreme Court’s landmark decision in Buckley v. Valeo. To commemorate the anniversary, the Institute for Free Speech convened a virtual panel to reflect on the history of the case and its enduring legacy. Moderated by Kim Strassel of the Wall Street Journal, the panel discussion featured the in...

January 30, 2026 marks the 50th anniversary of Buckley v. Valeo, a landmark First Amendment speech clause case. While the podcast normally airs current oral arguments, we thought that it would be interesting to spotlight the oral arguments in this landmark case during month of its anniversary. Episode 44:  Buckley v. Valeo James L. Buckley, et al. v. Francis R. Valeo, Secretary of the United State...

Episode 43:  National Republican Senatorial Committee, et al. v. Federal Election Commission, et al. National Republican Senatorial Committee, et al. v. Federal Election Commission, et al.  argued before the Supreme Court of the United States on December 9, 2025. Argued by Noel Francisco (on behalf of National Republican Senatorial Committee), Sarah M. Harris (on behalf of the federal respondents...

Episode 42: First Choice Women’s Resource Centers v. Platkin First Choice Women’s Resource Centers v. Platkin, argued before the Supreme Court of the United States on December 2, 2025. Argued by Erin Morrow Hawley, Alliance Defending Freedom, and Vivek Suri, Assistant Solicitor General (on behalf of First Choice Women’s Resource Centers), and Sundeep Subramanian Iyer, Chief Counsel to the Attorney...

Episode 41:  Scaer, et al. v. City of Nashua, et al. Scaer, et al. v. City of Nashua, et al.  argued before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit on December 2, 2025. Argued by Institute for Free Speech Attorney Nathan Ristuccia (on behalf of Stephen and Bethany Scaer) and Steven A. Bolton (on behalf of the City of Nashua, NH).  Case Background, from the Institute for Free Speech  case p...

Episode 40:  Associated Press v. Tayor Budowich, et al. Associated Press v. Taylor Budowich, et al.  argued  en banc  before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit on November 24, 2025. Argued by Yaakov M. Roth, Principal Deputy Attorney General of the United States (on behalf of Taylor Budowich, et al.) and Charles D. Tobin (on behalf of the Associated Press).   Case Background, from the ...

Episode 39:  Fellers v. Kelley Fellers, et al. v. Kelley, et al. , argued before Circuit Judge Julie Rikelman and Senior Circuit Judges Sandra L. Lynch and Jeffrey R. Howard in the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit on November 5, 2025. Argued by Del Kolde (on behalf of Kyle Fellers, et al.) and Jonathan Shirley (on behalf of Marcy Kelley, et al.).  Background of the case, from t...

Episode 38:  State of Washington v. Meta Platforms, Inc. State of Washington v. Meta Platforms, Inc. , argued before the Supreme Court of Washington on October 28, 2025. Argued by Robert McKenna (on behalf of Meta Platforms, Inc.) and Cristina Sepe, Deputy Solicitor General of the State of Washington (on behalf of State of Washington) . Background of the case, from the  Supplemental Brief of Petit...

Episode 37:  Chiles v. Salazar   Chiles v. Salazar,  argued before the Supreme Court of the United States on October 7, 2025. Argued by James Campbell (on behalf of Kaley Chiles), Hashim Mooppan, Principal Deputy Solicitor General (on behalf of the United States), and Shannon Stevenson, Colorado Solicitor General (on behalf of Patty Salazar). Case Background  (from the Supreme Court  question pres...

Episode 36: Center for Arizona Policy, Inc., et al. v. Arizona Secretary of State, et al. Center for Arizona Policy, et al. v. Arizona Secretary of State, et al. , argued before the Arizona Supreme Court on September 11, 2025. Argued by Andrew Gould (on behalf of Center for Arizona Policy, Inc., et al.) and Eric Fraser and Alexander Samuels on behalf of Arizona. Background of the case [from the In...

Episode 35:  Gays Against Groomers, et al. v. Garcia, et al. Gays Against Groomers, et al. v. Garcia, et al. , argued before Judges Joel M. Carson, David M. Ebel, and Richard E. N. Federico in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit on September 10, 2025. Argued by Institute for Free Speech Senior Attorney Del Kolde (on behalf of Gays Against Groomers, et al.) and Edward T. Ramey (on behal...

Episode 34:  Moving Oxnard Forward, Inc. v. Lourdes Lopez Moving Oxnard Forward, Inc. v. Lourdes Lopez , argued en banc before Chief Judge Mary H. Murguia and Circuit Judges Kim McLane Wardlaw, Consuelo M. Callahan, Jacqueline H. Nguyen, John B. Owens, Ryan D. Nelson, Eric D. Miller, Daniel P. Collins, Lawrence VanDyke, Lucy H. Koh, and Jennifer Sung for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Cir...

Episode 33:  Lowery v. Mills Lowery v. Mills , argued before Circuit Judges Jerry E. Smith, Dana M. Douglas, and Carolyn Dineen King in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit on August 4, 2025. Argued by Institute for Free Speech Senior Attorney Del Kolde on behalf of Prof. Richard Lowery and Jeff Oldham on behalf of the University of Texas at Austin officials.  Background of the case  [f...

Episode 32:  OPAWL – Building AAPI Feminist Leadership v. Dave Yost, et al. OPAWL – Building AAPI Feminist Leadership v. Dave Yost, et al. , argued before Circuit Judges Raymond M. Kethledge, Eric E. Murphy, and Andre B. Mathis in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit on July 23, 2025. Argued by Elisabeth C. Frost (on behalf of OPAWL – Building AAPI Feminist Leadership), Mathura Jaya Sri...

Episode 31: Libby v. Fecteau Libby, et al. v. Fecteau, et al. , argued before Circuit Judge Lara Montecalvo, Circuit Judge Seth Aframe, and District Judge Camille Vélez-Rivé in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit on June 5, 2025. Argued by Taylor Meehan of Consovoy McCarthy PLLC (on behalf of Laurel Libby, et al.), Harmeet Dhillon, Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights (for Amicu...

Episode 30:  Americans for Prosperity, et al. v. Meyer, et al. Americans for Prosperity, et al. v. Meyer, et al. , argued before Circuit Judges Johnnie B. Rawlinson, Patrick J. Bumatay, and Gabriel P. Sanchez in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit on May 15, 2025. Argued by Derek L. Shaffer (on behalf of Americans for Prosperity, et al.) and David Kolker (on behalf of Intervenor-Defend...

Episode 29:   Institute for Free Speech v. J.R. Johnson, et al.  Institute for Free Speech v. J.R. Johnson, et al.  argued before Chief Judge Jennifer Walker Elrod and Judges Kurt D. Engelhardt and Greg Gerard Guidry in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit on April 28, 2025. Argued by Del Kolde (on behalf of the Institute for Free Speech) and Cory R. Liu (on behalf of J.R. Johnson, et a...

Episode 28: Associated Press v. Taylor Budowich   Associated Press v. Taylor Budowich , argued before a three-judge panel in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit on April 17, 2025. Argued by Eric D. McArthur (on behalf of Appellants Taylor Budowich, et al.) and Charles D. Tobin (on behalf of Appellee Associated Press). Lawyers for the Trump administration are seeking a stay on the DC Distr...

Episode 27:  Local 8027, AFT-New Hampshire, AFL-CIO v. Edelblut Local 8027, AFT-New Hampshire, AFL-CIO v. Edelblut , argued before Circuit Judge Lara Montecalvo, Senior Circuit Judge William J. Kayatta, Jr., and Circuit Judge Seth Aframe in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit on April 8, 2025. Argued by Charles G. Moerdler and Gilles R. Bissonnette (on behalf of Local 8027, AFT-New Ham...

Episode 26: Parents Defending Education v. Olentangy Local School District, et al. Parents Defending Education v. Olentangy Local School District , argued before the en banc U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit on March 19, 2025. Argued by Cameron Norris (on behalf of Parents Defending Education); Elliott Gaiser, Solicitor General of Ohio (on behalf of Ohio and 22 other states as amici curi...