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The Daily Docket

A newsletter by Reuters and Westlaw

By Caitlin Tremblay

Good morning. President Trump vowed to “bring free speech back,” but 75 court rulings found he stifled it. Plus, after much ado, the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee is expected to advance Todd Blanche's nomination for attorney general; in a closely watched referendum, Kansas voters will head to the polls to decide if they should change how the state picks supreme court justices; and TikTok settled three teen social media lawsuits ahead of trial. Here’s a really interesting story about Neptune’s moons and a “celestial demolition derby.” Hope your Tuesday is comparatively uneventful. Let’s get going.

Trump vowed to 'bring free speech back.' Judges in 75 cases ruled that he has stifled it

REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein

President Trump campaigned on restoring free speech and ending what he called government censorship. But a Reuters review found federal judges have ruled 75 times that his administration violated First Amendment protections, including free speech, religion and press rights.

A growing clash with courts
The rulings span actions targeting universities, law firms, protesters and pro-Palestinian advocates. Judges have repeatedly found the administration penalized viewpoints at odds with the president's agenda, while the White House argues courts are improperly interfering with executive authority.

Appeals underway
Many of the decisions are preliminary and remain under appeal. Still, the volume of First Amendment rulings against the administration is unprecedented in modern U.S. history, making free speech one of the defining legal battlegrounds of Trump's second term.

Nate Raymond and Jan Wolfe have more here.

Coming up today

Voting rights: U.S. District Judge Kymberly Evanson in Seattle will hold a hearing over the DOJ’s lawsuit seeking to force the state of Washington to hand over its unredacted voter data.
AG: The U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee is expected to consider Todd Blanche's nomination for attorney general. Blanche rescinded an order establishing the "anti-weaponization" fund, paving the way for his confirmation after Republican senators stalled his nomination over concerns about the fund.
State courts: Kansas voters will head to the polls to vote on a proposed amendment to the state’s constitution that would allow them to elect state supreme court justices. Since 1958 the justices have been nominated by a commission and approved by the governor.
Criminal: A Minnesota man is slated to face trial on charges that he threatened to murder a federal judge mentioned in a 236-page manifesto titled "How to Kill a Federal Judge" and also threatened to kill a U.S. Supreme Court justice. Prosecutors in charging Robert Phillip Ivers did not identify the justice at issue, but an attorney previously identified him as Chief Justice John Roberts.

Court calendars are subject to last-minute docket changes.

More top news

Industry insight

Women lawyers report higher levels of anxiety, financial stress and depression than their male counterparts, with 37% experiencing anxiety compared with 23% of male attorneys, according to a new ABA survey. Read more here.
The Connecticut Supreme Court sanctioned a lawyer who submitted documents containing “erroneous and unverified citations,” warning lawyers they remain responsible for the accuracy of court filings produced with generative AI.

$15 million

That's the amount Jackson Walker will pay to settle a disgorgement action sought by the Office of the U.S. Trustee nearly three years after U.S. Bankruptcy Judge David Jones admitted to a secret romance with a former Jackson Walker partner. The Houston-based firm will also pay for an independent review of its bankruptcy disclosure requirements and ethical obligations. Read more here.