Only a week after the Institute for Justice (IJ) sent a letter to Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer urging her to allow garden centers and nurseries to operate during the COVID-19 pandemic, the governor has done exactly that. On Friday, she rescinded an earlier executive order that had prohibited these vital businesses from operating and issued a new order…

Dunedin, Fla. — Yesterday, Jim Ficken— a Dunedin, Fl. homeowner facing $30,000 in fines and even foreclosure for letting his grass get too long—won round one in court. A judge in the Middle District of Florida denied the city’s motion to dismiss Jim’s lawsuit. Now the lawsuit, which argues the city’s imposition of $500 daily…

Arlington, Va.—The Institute for Justice (IJ) sent open letters to six states calling on authorities to rescind their prohibition on food trucks operating at highway rest areas. Commercial truck drivers are delivering essential goods like medical devices, groceries and PPEs during the COVID-19 pandemic. Now states can help drivers keep doing just that by letting…

Arlington, Va.—Today, the Institute for Justice (IJ) partnered with medical professionals in two states to challenge laws that limit medical access and entrepreneurship. The lawsuits, which target certificate of need (CON) laws in Nebraska and North Carolina, challenge the constitutionality of laws that artificially limit doctors, hospitals and other medical professionals’ ability to provide services…

Omaha, Neb.—If you are allowed to drive a home health patient to get groceries, can that passenger also get her prescription filled? In Nebraska, that would be against the law unless you had permission from the government to operate a non-emergency medical transportation company. And, by the state’s certificate of need or “CON” law, the…

For the last month, governors across the country have clamored to find or build hospital ICU beds to deal with the influx of COVID-19 patients in need of advanced medical care. To do that, many states, including North Carolina, were forced to suspend laws artificially limiting the number of hospital beds available in a state.…

Yesterday, in Ramos v. Louisiana, the Supreme Court ruled that the Sixth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution requires a unanimous jury verdict of guilty to convict someone of a serious crime in state court. The Institute for Justice (IJ), which won a unanimous decision last year in a related case, filed an amicus brief in…

As many Americans find themselves sheltering in place at home, home gardening is growing increasingly popular. But in Michigan, thanks to a series of executive orders issued in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, garden centers, greenhouses, and plant nurseries have been effectively barred from selling to the public through April 30. On Wednesday, the Institute…

Clarkston, Wash.—When Kathy Hay set up a little free pantry in her backyard last December, she had no idea that an unprecedented crisis was about to create thousands of newly-jobless neighbors scrambling to find food for their families. At the time, she just wanted to share food with her lower-income neighbors and give back to a community that had supported her when she was having a hard…

Arlington, Va.—The Institute for Justice (IJ) sent open letters to six states calling on authorities to suspend requirements that nurse practitioners may only work in hospitals under the supervision of a physician. The supervision requirements in California, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, Texas and Virginia prevent many nurse practitioners from helping patients in overburdened hospitals, even…

In an effort to help individuals and small businesses fight the COVID-19 pandemic and survive the economic crisis, the Institute for Justice has brought to bear its expertise to challenge unnecessary regulations hampering individuals’ ability to work to improve the situation. At the same time, IJ is also addressing the broader systemic problems that have made…

Camden, Tenn.—Terry Rainwaters lives, farms and hunts on the 136 acres he owns along the Big Sandy River in rural Tennessee. It’s clear that the farm is private property, with a “no trespassing” sign on the gate. Yet agents of the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA) ignored that warning, entering his property to set up…

Washington—A brand-new website, www.ShopInPlaceDC.com, is offering D.C. metro residents a place to find neighborhood small businesses that are still selling products for residents sheltering at home. The website is currently live and welcomes submissions from D.C.-area small businesses selling products in categories such as food, fitness, bath and cleaning products, books, toys and more. The…

Arlington, Va.—Everyone hates robocalls. But last year, the Fourth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Congress’s attempt to regulate robocalls—through the Telephone Consumer Protection Act— violated the First Amendment. Instead of banning all robocalls, Congress had banned robocalls on some topics while allowing robocalls that discussed other topics (like certain kinds of debt collection).…

CHICAGO—In just seven days online, www.ShopInPlaceChi.com has become a website where Chicago residents can find more than 250 small businesses selling products essential for residents sheltering at home. Tens of thousands of Chicagoans have used the site to search for small businesses by category and neighborhood. The website is free to the public courtesy of…

Arlington, Virginia—This morning the U.S. Supreme Court announced it would review the case of James King, an innocent college student who was savagely beaten in 2014 by a police officer and FBI agent in Grand Rapids, Michigan, after being unreasonably misidentified as a fugitive. The officers were working as members of a joint state-federal police…

Pasadena, Calif.—On Monday, March 30, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals will consider a case in which two entrepreneurs have spent 23 years trying to travel 55 miles by boat—and they have yet to reach their destination. Jim and Cliff Courtney from Washington state have endured a 23-year ongoing legal battle for the right to use the nation’s waters in pursuit of a livelihood. But rather…

CHICAGO—A brand new website, www.ShopInPlaceChi.com, is offering Windy City consumers a place to find neighborhood small businesses that are still selling products essential for residents sheltering at home. The website is currently live and welcomes new submissions from Chicago small businesses selling products in categories such as bath and cleaning products, books, educational supplies, games…

Arlington, Va.—Seven years ago, police officers in Fresno, California, executed search warrants on the homes and business of Micah Jessop and Brittan Ashjian, who owned a business operating and servicing ATMs. Police were investigating a report of illegal gambling. Although neither was ever charged with a crime, police seized nearly $275,000 in rare coins the…

Tallahassee, Fla.—Local governments across Florida will no longer be able to ban food trucks or require food truck operators to get an additional local license in order to vend under a bill passed by the Florida House and Senate today. The provision is part of a broader bill to reform occupational licensing in the state…