Strategic lawsuit against public participationStrategic lawsuits against public participation (also known as SLAPP suits or intimidation lawsuits), or strategic litigation against public participation, are lawsuits intended to censor, intimidate, and silence critics by burdening them with the cost of a legal defense until they abandon their criticism or opposition. In a typical SLAPP, the plaintiff does not normally expect to win the lawsuit.
Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United StatesAn associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States is a justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, other than the chief justice of the United States. The number of associate justices is eight, as set by the Judiciary Act of 1869. Article II, Section 2, Clause 2 of the Constitution of the United States grants plenary power to the president to nominate, and with the advice and consent (confirmation) of the Senate, appoint justices to the Supreme Court.Legal threatA legal threat is a statement by a party that it intends to take legal action on another party, generally accompanied by a demand that the other party take an action demanded by the first party or refrain from taking or continuing actions objected to by the demanding party.
Self-censorshipSelf-censorship is the act of censoring or classifying one's own discourse, typically out of fear or deference to the perceived preferences, sensibilities, or infallibility of others, and often without overt external pressure. Self-censorship is commonly exhibited by film producers, directors, publishers, journalists, musicians, and social media personalities. Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights guarantees freedom of speech from all forms of censorship.
RightsRights are legal, social, or ethicalprinciples of freedom or entitlement; that is, rights are the fundamental normative rules about what is allowed of people or owed to people according to some legal system, social convention, or ethical theory. Rights are an important concept in law and ethics, especially theories of justice and deontology. The history of social conflicts has often involved attempts to define and redefine rights.
AreopagiticaAreopagitica; A speech of Mr. John Milton for the Liberty of Unlicenc'd Printing, to the Parlament of England is a 1644 prose polemic by the English poet, scholar, and polemical author John Milton opposing the Licensing Order of 1643, which had re-introduced censorship of books during the First English Civil War. Areopagitica is among history's most influential and impassioned philosophical defences of the principle of a right to freedom of speech and expression.CoercionCoercion involves compelling a party to act in an involuntary manner through the use of threats, including threats to use force against that party. It involves a set of forceful actions which violate the free will of an individual in order to induce a desired response. These actions may include extortion, blackmail, or even torture and sexual assault. Common-law systems recognize duress as a defense to criminal liability when an individual commits an offense under coercion.Wieman v. UpdegraffWieman v. Updegraff, 344 U.S. 183 (1952), is a unanimous ruling by the United States Supreme Court which held that Oklahoma loyalty oath legislation violated the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution because it did not give individuals the opportunity to abjure membership in subversive organizations.Supreme Court of the United StatesThe Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that turn on questions of U.S. constitutional or federal law. It also has original jurisdiction over a narrow range of cases, specifically "all Cases affecting Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls, and those in which a State shall be Party".
John MiltonEnglish poet and civil servant (1608–1674)John Milton (9 December 1608 – 8 November 1674) was an English poet, polemicist, and civil servant. His 1667 epic poemParadise Lost was written in blank verse and included 12 books, written in a time of immense religious flux and political upheaval. It addressed the fall of man, including the temptation of Adam and Eve by the fallen angelSatan, and God's expulsion of them from the Garden of Eden.
William J. Brennan Jr.William Joseph Brennan Jr. (April 25, 1906 – July 24, 1997) was an American lawyer and jurist who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1956 to 1990. He was the eighth-longest serving justice in Supreme Court history, and was known for being a leader of the Court's liberal wing. Born to Irish immigrant parents in Newark, New Jersey, Brennan studied economics at the University of Pennsylvania and then attended Harvard Law School.DefamationDefamation is a communication that injures a third party's reputation and causes a legally redressable injury. The precise legal definition of defamation varies from country to country. It is not necessarily restricted to making assertions that are false, and can extend to concepts that are more abstract than reputation such as dignity and honour.
Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United StatesAn associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States is a justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, other than the chief justice of the United States. The number of associate justices is eight, as set by the Judiciary Act of 1869. Article II, Section 2, Clause 2 of the Constitution of the United States grants plenary power to the president to nominate, and with the advice and consent (confirmation) of the Senate, appoint justices to the Supreme Court.Legal threatA legal threat is a statement by a party that it intends to take legal action on another party, generally accompanied by a demand that the other party take an action demanded by the first party or refrain from taking or continuing actions objected to by the demanding party.Self-censorshipSelf-censorship is the act of censoring or classifying one's own discourse, typically out of fear or deference to the perceived preferences, sensibilities, or infallibility of others, and often without overt external pressure. Self-censorship is commonly exhibited by film producers, directors, publishers, journalists, musicians, and social media personalities. Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights guarantees freedom of speech from all forms of censorship.RightsRights are legal, social, or ethicalprinciples of freedom or entitlement; that is, rights are the fundamental normative rules about what is allowed of people or owed to people according to some legal system, social convention, or ethical theory. Rights are an important concept in law and ethics, especially theories of justice and deontology. The history of social conflicts has often involved attempts to define and redefine rights.AreopagiticaAreopagitica; A speech of Mr. John Milton for the Liberty of Unlicenc'd Printing, to the Parlament of England is a 1644 prose polemic by the English poet, scholar, and polemical author John Milton opposing the Licensing Order of 1643, which had re-introduced censorship of books during the First English Civil War. Areopagitica is among history's most influential and impassioned philosophical defences of the principle of a right to freedom of speech and expression.CoercionCoercion involves compelling a party to act in an involuntary manner through the use of threats, including threats to use force against that party. It involves a set of forceful actions which violate the free will of an individual in order to induce a desired response. These actions may include extortion, blackmail, or even torture and sexual assault. Common-law systems recognize duress as a defense to criminal liability when an individual commits an offense under coercion.Wieman v. UpdegraffWieman v. Updegraff, 344 U.S. 183 (1952), is a unanimous ruling by the United States Supreme Court which held that Oklahoma loyalty oath legislation violated the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution because it did not give individuals the opportunity to abjure membership in subversive organizations.Supreme Court of the United StatesThe Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that turn on questions of U.S. constitutional or federal law. It also has original jurisdiction over a narrow range of cases, specifically "all Cases affecting Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls, and those in which a State shall be Party".John MiltonEnglish poet and civil servant (1608–1674)John Milton (9 December 1608 – 8 November 1674) was an English poet, polemicist, and civil servant. His 1667 epic poemParadise Lost was written in blank verse and included 12 books, written in a time of immense religious flux and political upheaval. It addressed the fall of man, including the temptation of Adam and Eve by the fallen angelSatan, and God's expulsion of them from the Garden of Eden.William J. Brennan Jr.William Joseph Brennan Jr. (April 25, 1906 – July 24, 1997) was an American lawyer and jurist who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1956 to 1990. He was the eighth-longest serving justice in Supreme Court history, and was known for being a leader of the Court's liberal wing. Born to Irish immigrant parents in Newark, New Jersey, Brennan studied economics at the University of Pennsylvania and then attended Harvard Law School.DefamationDefamation is a communication that injures a third party's reputation and causes a legally redressable injury. The precise legal definition of defamation varies from country to country. It is not necessarily restricted to making assertions that are false, and can extend to concepts that are more abstract than reputation such as dignity and honour.*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.