ARLINGTON, Va. –  Today, the United States District Court of Minnesota denied a motion to dismiss a case brought by the Institute for Justice (IJ) on behalf of Leda Mox against Dennis Olson, Jr, the Commissioner of the Minnesota Office of Higher Education in a case on whether teaching is protected under the First Amendment. In the ruling, the court found the “Commissioner has not provided (and could not appropriately provide at this stage) any evidence that the Act advances at least important governmental interests and does not burden substantially more speech than is necessary.” The case will now move to the discovery phase.

The case stems from Leda’s passion for horses and her desire to teach others about how to take care of them. Horses, much like any human, can benefit from massage by alleviating muscle pain when training for athletic events, or just to ease tension and relax. Leda is an expert in the subject and has a bachelor’s degree in equine science as well as being certified in equine massage since 1997, when she skipped her high school graduation to attend one of the only certification programs in the country at the time.

But the state of Minnesota doesn’t care about Leda’s credentials, or her subject matter expertise, or, most importantly, her constitutional protections under the First Amendment for occupational speech. What the Office of Higher Education instead cares about is forcing Leda to complete a thirty-page application, pay exorbitant fees up front (and then annually to maintain her license), and furnish the state with a great deal of information—most of which is completely inapplicable to her small business. 

But instead of giving in, Leda is fighting back with the help of IJ to protect her right, and the rights of everyone, to teach under the First Amendment.

“The court today recognized that teaching is speech, and it is fully protected by the First Amendment,” said IJ Senior Attorney Jeffrey Redfern. “The government bears a heavy burden of justifying any restrictions on First Amendment activity.”

“I’m thankful for today’s decision and look forward to settling this matter once and for all,” said Leda. “For the state to come in and tell me what I can and cannot say to people who want to hear it, that’s just not right.”

Previously, IJ has successfully protected a Mississippi startup’s First Amendment right to create informal maps in the face of a regulatory board’s failed bid to shut the company down for supposedly practicing “land surveying” without a license. In California, IJ successfully defended a horseshoeing teacher’s right to talk about horseshoeing to willing students and the right of two end-of-life doulas to talk about home funerals with willing clients. IJ has also secured court victories all over the country—from the District of Columbia to Charleston to Savannah—for tour guides who want to tell stories without needing the government’s permission. 

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To arrange interviews on this subject, journalists may contact Phillip Suderman, IJ’s Communications Project Manager at [email protected] (850) 376-4110. More information on the case is available at:  https://ij.org/case/minnesota-horse-teaching/