Gunster attorney Thomas R. Julin authored a legal opinion letter that was published recently by the Washington Legal Foundation, a nonprofit public interest law organization and policy center.
Julin points out that with the 1976 decision in Virginia State Board of Pharmacy v. Virginia Citizens Consumer Council Inc., the U.S. Supreme Court concluded commercial speech deserves First Amendment protection – and since then, has repeatedly contemplated the level of protection due commercial speech.
Lawmakers and regulators are advised to keep in mind that laws or rules attempting to curb commercial speech will face heightened judicial scrutiny and the burden of stringent legal tests should be they be challenged in court, Julin says.
Read the Julin letter in its entirety: Better think twice before restricting commercial speech (Washington Legal Foundation, Vol. 26, No. 4, legal opinion letter, 2/10/17)
Julin has litigated free speech issues of almost every type in Florida and around the country, and is dedicated to advocating the First Amendment rights of businesses. He leads Gunster’s First Amendment law practice, and works out of the firm’s Miami office.
UPDATE: Julin was called out for his renown as a First Amendment lawyer after several high-profile cases, including a data mining win before the U.S. Supreme Court, in a April 12 Daily Business Review article by DBR writer Celia Ampel.
Read related: Civil rights work has an all-new meaning (Best Lawyers, 3/31/17)
