December 2023

In our relentless defense of the Constitution, we continue to stand as a formidable force against the Administrative State’s abuse of power. Our victories and upcoming oral arguments in the U.S. Supreme Court underscore NCLA’s achievements in safeguarding individual rights and challenging unlawful actions of government agencies.

Read more below about NCLA’s fight against the U.S. State Department-funded censorship regime, our win against the Department of Transportation’s abusive administrative enforcement practices, and the future of the Department of Education’s illegal student loan payment pause.

Thank you for being part of the New Civil Liberties Alliance and for your support. Keep scrolling to learn what’s happening at NCLA Now!

The Latest

Unwrap the laughter this season with our hilarious holiday carol parody about SEC!

WATCH: “Fear Not Fellow Commissioners” (NCLA’s parody to the tune of “God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen”)

First NCLA scored a Supreme Court victory in SEC v. Cochran. Then, in the wake of news about a “control deficiency,” the agency dismissed 42 cases rather than allow discovery on just how badly the SEC prosecutors abused their access to ALJ files. And now, the Supreme Court has heard oral argument in SEC v. Jarkesy, in which NCLA filed an amicus brief. We wondered what impact all of this bad news might have on the poor, beleaguered souls at the SEC. So used to their 96%+ win rate, what must the commissioners be telling themselves during this holiday season?

Our panel of expert appellate litigators discuss Cochran v. SEC, SEC v. Jarkesy, and other recent cases and events that lay bare the perfidy of the SEC.

WATCH: Can We Hold the SEC Accountable for Its Shenanigans?

NCLA leads the fight against the Star Chamber that is the Securities and Exchange Commission. But what if we told you the SEC is simply ignoring Supreme Court rulings and playing games with prosecutions in order to prevent Article III courts from reviewing its shenanigans? What if we told you SEC got caught breaking the law and, rather than face the consequences in court, it decided to dismiss 42 cases so that neither judge nor jury would ever be able to hold the agency accountable?

Cases to Watch

The State Department’s use of tax dollars to fund the silencing of a segment of the American press is appalling—and terrifying.

NCLA Launches Lawsuit Against U.S. State Department-Funded Censorship Regime

The U.S. State Department funds the development, testing, and marketing of censorship technology used to suppress First Amendment-protected speech by conservative media outlets including The Daily Wire and The Federalist based on viewpoints expressed in their content. NCLA has filed a lawsuit on behalf of these outlets in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas to stop what appears to be one of the most egregious violations of the First Amendment’s guarantees of freedom of press and freedom of speech by the federal government in American history. Read more>>

The First Amendment’s core function is to protect freedom of expression about government power. SEC unlawfully arrogates power to silence criticism by the 98% of enforcement targets who must settle their cases.

NCLA Renews Ask for SEC to Amend or Revoke Gag Rule on Targets of Settled Enforcement Cases

For over five decades, the Securities and Exchange Commission has violated the First Amendment by gagging every American with whom it settles a regulatory enforcement case, forbidding them from uttering even truthful criticism of their cases in public. More than five years ago, NCLA petitioned SEC to abolish or amend its “Gag Rule,” but the agency has ignored that petition and continued its unconstitutional practice. NCLA, its client Christopher Novinger, and former clients Barry Romeril and Ray Lucia filed a renewed petition demanding an end to this lifetime gag rule and posing the same question U.S. District Judge Ronnie Abrams asked last year: “What is SEC so afraid of?” Read more>>

For decades, DOT has dragged small businesses through administrative proceedings that violate basic constitutional rights such as due process and the right to a jury trial.

In NCLA Victory, Dep’t of Transportation Scraps Illegitimate Administrative Proceeding vs. gh Package

NCLA has agreed to a stipulated dismissal of its gh Package v. Buttigieg lawsuit challenging the Department of Transportation’s unconstitutional and abusive administrative enforcement regime. NCLA’s federal-court lawsuit successfully pressured DOT to dismiss with prejudice its case against a family-run company, gh Package Product Testing and Consulting, Inc., which tests packages used to transport hazardous chemicals safely. The stipulated dismissal follows DOT’s dismissal of its administrative proceeding against gh Package with prejudice. NCLA celebrates this great victory for its client. Read more>>

Joseph G. Lehman, President of the Mackinac Center for Public Policy, an independent, nonprofit research and educational institute in Michigan.

NCLA Asks Court to Uphold Lawsuit Against Dep’t of Education’s Illegal Student Loan Payment Pause

The U.S. government has asked a federal judge to dismiss an NCLA lawsuit on behalf of the Mackinac Center for Public Policy against the Dept. of Education’s unlawful 35-month suspension of monthly student loan payment obligations. NCLA has filed a response urging the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan to continue the case, Mackinac Center for Public Policy v. U.S. Department of Education, and take action against the Department’s abuse of power. Read more>>

Click here for more cases to watch.

Friends of the Court

While lower courts have been reluctant to review presidential monument designations under the Antiquities Act, the Supreme Court should not be reticent.

NCLA Amicus Brief Asks Supreme Court to Stop Presidential Edicts from Superseding Land Use Laws

Presidents do not have the power to dispense with statutes. NCLA has filed an amicus curiae brief emphasizing that point and urging the U.S. Supreme Court to grant certiorari in Murphy Company v. Biden. In this case, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit upheld a presidential proclamation that contradicts Congressionally-mandated land use in the Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument. The withdrawal of lawful land use in this monument designation is part of a legally disturbing trend: for the last 25 years, presidents of both parties have been exceeding their constitutional authority to designate monuments and inappropriately dispensing with statutes passed by Congress. Read more>>

Click here for more amicus briefs to watch.

In the News

???? Shutting Down Free Speech on Social Media: ‘This Is the Administrative State Run Amok‘, NTD

???? The Federalist’s Mollie Hemingway Talks About NCLA’s 1st Amendment Lawsuit Against State Department,Fox News

???? Witness in Congressional hearing says DHS led the creation of a ‘censorship apparatus’, Just the News

???? US State Department sued for covert censorship by Texas AG, conservative media, Human Events

???? Daily Wire And The Federalist Sue Biden State Department Over Censorship Effort, The Daily Wire

???? Judge Newman Argues Her Lawsuit Seeking Reinstatement Isn’t Moot, CNN
???? Peggy Little on State of the Nation, TNT Radio

Click here for more media mentions.

Administrative Toon