Institute for Justice
Liberty & Law
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In This Issue
Tennessee Parents Fight to Rescue Their Kids From the State’s Worst Schools
IJ clients Natu Bah and Builguissa Diallo share an entrepreneurial spirit. Both immigrated to the United States from countries in West Africa, seeking a better life. Both settled just outside Memphis, Tennessee, where together they built an African hair braiding business using the skills that had been passed down to them through generations. And both…
Mapping Out a Free Speech Victory at the 5th Circuit
In February, IJ scored a major win for free speech when a federal appeals court ruled that occupational licensing is not a First Amendment-free zone. The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that IJ and our client Vizaline LLC, a technology company, can go forward with a free speech challenge to a licensing law…
Engineer’s Free Speech Victory Leads to New Traffic Recommendations
One of the things that sets IJ’s First Amendment practice apart is our belief that freedom of speech isn’t just about protests or politics—it’s about all the ways that the free flow of information enhances human life. That’s why IJ has long focused on defending commercial and occupational speech: Both are socially valuable forms of…
Christina Walsh Wins National Award for Her Work With Property Owners
In January, the Owners’ Counsel of America, a nonprofit, nationwide network of property rights lawyers, presented the prestigious Crystal Eagle Award to IJ’s Christina Walsh. The Crystal Eagle, the organization’s highest honor, is presented only once a year to recognize heroic achievements in protecting property rights. Although past recipients have largely been attorneys (including IJ’s…
IJ Fights to Protect Motorists in Motor City
Each year, Michigan police and prosecutors use civil forfeiture to take hundreds of cars from residents of Detroit and surrounding Wayne County. Law enforcement routinely seizes these vehicles on the thinnest of pretenses, such as a car’s presence in a neighborhood known for prostitution. Once cars are seized, prosecutors hold them ransom, demanding $1,000 or…
IJ’s 2020 Partners Retreat
This fall, IJ supporters will have an opportunity that comes along only once every few years: the chance to attend an Institute for Justice Partners Retreat. IJ’s 2020 Partners Retreat will be held September 10–13, 2020, at The Resort at Pelican Hill in beautiful Newport Beach, California. This weekend gathering will offer an unparalleled look…
In Capitols and Communities: IJ Teamwork Pushes Educational Choice Forward in Kentucky
IJ’s commitment to helping parents access the best educational options for their children doesn’t stop at the courtroom door. Through our 29 years as the lawyers for the educational choice movement, IJ knows that parent participation and grassroots support are crucial to the passage and long-term success of choice programs. That’s why IJ attorneys routinely…
Celebrating and Preserving Educational Choice in IJ’s Backyard
IJ’s annual Winter Carnival brings together more than 1,200 parents and children from across D.C. to celebrate D.C.’s Opportunity Scholarship Program (OSP). The OSP, which provides scholarships to underserved families to attend private schools, is the only federal educational choice program in the country. Since the OSP must be reauthorized every few years by Congress,…
VICTORY! Mobile Boutiques Licensed to Breeze Through the Windy City’s Streets
For a decade, IJ has led the charge in the fight to legitimize mobile businesses, such as food trucks and pushcart vendors. We can now add Chicago’s mobile boutique owners to the list of entrepreneurs newly free to work. After a five-year advocacy campaign, mobile boutiques can finally obtain a business license to operate in…
Training—and Growing—the Next Generation of Litigators for Liberty
As IJ tackles ever larger and more complex legal issues, IJ itself must also grow. To successfully recruit attorneys who are both intellectually skilled and passionate about IJ’s mission, we must continually enlarge our talent pipeline. One new way IJ is finding the best and brightest legal minds is by expanding our law student training…
Judicial Engagement Goes on Tour
If you’re reading Liberty & Law, you’ve probably read the term “judicial engagement.” You’re also probably familiar with the idea that state constitutions, not just the U.S. Constitution, have a vital role to play in protecting individual liberties. Over the years, IJ has won many victories for entrepreneurs, property owners, and others by pointing to…
IJ Makes Headlines
These articles and editorials are just a sample of favorable local and national pieces IJ secured in the weeks prior to the release of the December issue of Liberty & Law. By getting our message out in print, radio, broadcast, and online media, we show the real-world consequences of government restrictions on individual liberty—and make…
