NRA V. GOV. CUOMO
AMICUS BRIEFS
Texas and Indiana Attorneys General File Amicus Brief in Support of NRA Cert Petition to U.S. Supreme Court
On May 24, 2023, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and Indiana Attorney General Theodore E. Rokita submitted an amicus brief in support of the NRA’s certiorari petition to the Supreme Court.
Texas AG Paxton and Indiana AG Rokita write, “Allowing government regulatory bodies to leverage their power over third parties to intrude on the speech and associational interests of any private entity harms the ability of States like Texas to maintain vibrant, growing economies. The actions taken by DFS and its superintendent in this case tend to minimize economic freedom by making businesses hesitant to interact with certain groups and individuals for fear of regulatory retaliation.”
Gun Owners of America Joins Coalition in Filing Amicus Brief in Support of NRA Cert Petition to U.S. Supreme Court
On May 24, 2023, a coalition led by Gun Owners of America filed an amicus brief urging the U.S. Supreme Court to "protect the NRA's First Amendment freedoms."
The brief states, "Presiding over the traditionally left-leaning states of New York, Vermont, and Connecticut, the Second Circuit apparently did not stop to consider the risks its decision poses to left-leaning groups who advocate their causes in conservative states."
Goldwater Institute Files Amicus Brief in Support of NRA Cert Petition to U.S. Supreme Court
On May 23, 2023, the Goldwater Institute filed an amicus brief urging the U.S. Supreme Court to "protect the NRA's First Amendment freedoms."
In a column, “Goldwater to Supreme Court: Government Can’t Punish Political Opponents for Free Speech,” Goldwater Institute Staff Attorney John Thorpe writes, “The Goldwater Institute filed an amicus brief in support of the NRA, asking the Supreme Court to step in and declare that government officials can’t punish individuals or groups for their free speech by bullying others into cutting ties with them. In its brief, Goldwater pointed out that millions of Americans are subject to the same kind of ‘informal censorship’ that happened here. That’s because they, like the NRA’s former business partners, live and work under complex regulatory regimes where bureaucrats can easily use investigations, licensing decisions, and other forms of red tape as weapons against those whose beliefs and ideologies they disapprove of.”
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Files Amicus Brief in Support of NRA Cert Petition to U.S. Supreme Court
On May 23, 2023, the Competitive Enterprise Institute filed an amicus brief in support of the NRA’s certiorari petition to the Supreme Court. The Institute is a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting the principles of free markets and limited government.
Republican Attorneys General File Amicus Brief in Support of NRA Cert Petition to U.S. Supreme Court
On April 5, 2023, 18 Republican Attorneys General filed an amicus brief in support of the NRA’s certiorari petition to the Supreme Court. On February 7, 2023, the NRA petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court to review a controversial judgment issued by the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in NRA v. Maria Vullo.
The AGs write: “The Second Circuit’s decision gives government officials license to financially cripple their political opponents, or otherwise stifle their protected speech—whether those rivals advocate for school choice, abortion rights, religious liberty, environmental protections, or any other politically salient issue. As the ACLU argues, the decision gives ‘[p]ublic officials … a readymade playbook for abusing their regulatory power to harm disfavored advocacy groups without triggering judicial scrutiny.’”
FIRE Files Amicus Brief in Support of NRA Cert Petition to U.S. Supreme Court
On April 5, 2023, The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression
(FIRE) filed an amicus brief in support of the NRA’s certiorari petition to the Supreme Court. FIRE is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization
dedicated to defending the individual rights of all Americans to free speech and free thought.
The brief states: “Given its decades of experience defending freedom of expression, FIRE is keenly aware that public officials too often misuse their power through threats and other informal mechanisms of coercion to stifle controversial speakers and impose ideological conformity. FIRE submits this brief to urge this Court to reverse the alarming decision of the Second Circuit, which held that petitioner had failed to state a viable claim despite detailed allegations that a powerful New York state official threatened action against regulated entities that associated with petitioner because she opposed petitioner’s political advocacy.”
Financial and Business Law Scholars File Amicus Brief in Support of NRA Cert Petition to U.S. Supreme Court
On March 21, 2023, financial and business law scholars, Brian Knight of George Mason University’s Mercatus Center and George Mocsary of the University of Wyoming College of Law, filed an amicus brief in support of the NRA’s certiorari petition to the Supreme Court. On February 7, 2023, the NRA petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court to review a controversial judgment issued by the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in NRA v. Maria Vullo.
Knight and Mocsary write that the trial court erred in “finding the lack of explicitly binding language or threats from [DFS] in its guidance letter meant that no reasonable regulated firm would consider itself bound by those letters. The reality of banking and insurance regulations is that firms frequently feel that they risk sanction if they do not comply with nominally non-binding guidance.” The authors write that the trial court misunderstood the relationship between regulators and financial institutions. Those institutions have historically faced formal and informal penalties for “failure to conform” to such guidance as issued by Vullo.
ACLU Amicus Brief
On August 24, 2018, the ACLU submitted an amicus brief in support of the NRA, accurately describing defendant's conduct as "viewpoint discrimination."
In a statement regarding the brief, ACLU Legal Director David Cole wrote, "In the ACLU’s view, targeting a nonprofit advocacy group and seeking to deny it financial services because it promotes a lawful activity (the use of guns) violates the First Amendment. Because we believe the governor’s actions, as alleged, threaten the First Amendment rights of all advocacy organizations, the ACLU... filed a friend-of-the-court brief supporting the NRA’s right to have its day in court."
