The Institute for Justice litigates to protect the constitutional rights of all Americans. IJ defends ordinary people who want to earn an honest living, own and enjoy their property, speak freely, and give their children a good education but find that the government is standing in their way.
We fight to hold government officials accountable when they violate constitutional rights and to prevent governments at all levels from bending the rules to expand their power or advance illegitimate ends.
IJ wins three out of four cases through outright courtroom victories or legislative change prompted by our lawsuits.
Featured Cases
Eminent Domain | Private Property
Bowers v. Oneida County Industrial Development Agency
Utica, New York
Can the government take your property just to hand it over to your business competitor? That is the question New York developer Bryan Bowers is asking the United States Supreme Court after New York’s courts said it was perfectly fine for a county redevelopment agency to condemn his property and give it to a rival developer to use as a…
Educational Choice | Publicly Funded Scholarships
South Carolina ESAs
In 2023, South Carolina created the Education Scholarship Trust Fund (“ESTF”) program. This student aid program grants thousands of qualifying, low-income families a $6,000 scholarship that parents can use for educational expenses for their children—things…
First Amendment | First Amendment Retaliation | Immunity and Accountability
Atmore, Alabama Retaliation
Four residents of a small Alabama county were targeted for retaliation by a district attorney and sheriff. Now, they are suing with IJ to protect their constitutional rights.
Economic Liberty | Fresh Start
Texas Fresh Start Social Worker
Texas—and the country—face a two-fold problem: an exploding mental health and substance abuse crisis and a dire shortage of professional social workers to address those issues. Yet rather than make it easier for qualified applicants…
Arizona Charitable Sharing
Norma Thornton was arrested for feeding the hungry in Bullhead City Community Park. Now, Norma has teamed up with IJ to fight back against Bullhead's law criminalizing charitable sharing in federal court.
Code Enforcement | Fines and Fees | Private Property
Humboldt Abatements
In Humboldt County, the government issues ruinous fines for things people didn’t do because it doesn’t bother to investigate. Innocent landowners then have to appeal the fines to prove their innocence at a hearing the…
Economic Liberty | First Amendment | Occupational Licensing | Occupational Speech
California Mapping
Do you need a government license to trace a map from publicly available data? It might sound ridiculous, but in California the answer is “yes.” An entrepreneur joined with the Institute for Justice (IJ) to…
First Amendment | First Amendment Retaliation | Immunity and Accountability
Novak v. Parma
Anthony Novak was arrested by his local police after he parodied the department on Facebook. His lawsuit against the city was dismissed after the officers were given qualified immunity.
First Amendment | First Amendment Retaliation | Immunity and Accountability
Bailey v. Iles
Waylon Bailey was arrested after making a joke about his local sheriff's office. His First Amendment lawsuit was dismissed after the deputies were granted qualified immunity.
Private Property | Small and Home-Based Business | Zoning Justice Project
South Carolina Amortization
A South Carolina town changed its zoning regulations and ordered a small automotive business to stop renting U-Hauls. The owners are now fighting back.
Cosmetology | Economic Liberty
Oklahoma Eyelashes
Brandy Davis is a licensed eyelash extension specialist who is being blocked from doing her job by the Oklahoma Board of Cosmetology and Licensing. She's suing in state court to challenge the board's licensing requirements.
Code Enforcement | Fines and Fees | Private Property
New York Boilers
Serafim Katergaris was forced to pay $1,000 to the New York Department of Buildings (DOB) for a code violation he did not commit, did not know about and had no chance to challenge. Now, he's…
Fines and Fees | Private Property
Foreign Bank Account Fines
An Boston-area grandmother is fighting to have courts consider whether the multimillion-dollar penalty the government imposed on is unconstitutionally excessive.
First Amendment | First Amendment Retaliation | Housing Abundance and Affordability | Private Property | Right to Shelter | Zoning Justice Project
Meridian, Idaho Tiny Homes
Chasidy Decker is a native to the Boise area who wants to live in the tiny home that suits her.
Immunity and Accountability | Private Property
Mario Rosales Qualified Immunity
Mario Rosales was held at gunpoint by an off-duty sheriff's deputy even though he had done nothing wrong. Still, a court granted the officer qualified immunity and dismissed Mario's civil rights lawsuit.
4th Amendment Project | First Amendment | First Amendment Retaliation | Immunity and Accountability | Political Speech | Private Property
East Cleveland Retaliation
Cities can’t use the police to punish political speech.