Liberty Justice Center

Founded in 2011, the Liberty Justice Center is a nonprofit, public interest litigation firm that protects free speech, school choice and economic liberty for all Americans. We litigate free market and individual liberty issues that are ripe for legal review and have potential for transformational impact. Our experienced team of attorneys fights against unconstitutional policies, giving voice to the voiceless and protecting individual freedom.

Worker freedom: The Liberty Justice Center is building upon our victory in Janus v. AFSCME by defending workers’ First Amendment rights with our three-pronged litigation strategy. We are also working on legal theories that question additional instances where the government forces private individuals to join or support private organizations.

Citizen privacy: Under the guise of “transparency,” politicians are using the power of the government to intimidate detractors and stifle free speech. This puts private citizens at risk of retaliation or retribution for supporting advocacy organizations. The Liberty Justice Center is defending privacy for all Americans.

School choice: The right to a quality education has long been a priority at the Liberty Justice Center. Our attorneys are actively pursuing strategic litigation in states with the greatest opposition to school choice.

Economic liberty: The Liberty Justice Center has a record of defending economic liberty and challenging unconstitutional campaign finance laws, violations of commercial free speech and overreaching government regulations. We will continue to file litigation fighting political privilege.

We have an advanced legal team, experienced in a variety of litigation issues, including worker freedom, education, economic reform and privacy. Our team directly engages with every potential client. We believe our hands-on approach is uniquely powerful in engaging clients through multiple stages over the course of years.

The Liberty Justice Center achieved national recognition in 2018 for the greatest free speech victory in a generation with the landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling, Janus v. AFSCME. The First Amendment is in place to protect the fundamental rights of Americans. Unfortunately, states across the nation are passing laws that inhibit these rights. The Liberty Justice Center is fighting to preserve individual freedoms across the nation through strategic litigation and skillful outreach.

Worker freedom: Janus v. AFSCME liberated 5 million public sector workers from having to pay union fees as a condition of their employment. Despite the expansive Janus decision, government unions and employers continue to make it difficult for workers to exercise their restored rights. The Liberty Justice Center is advancing a three-prong litigation strategy to ensure workers’ Janus rights are protected and enforced across the country.

Donor privacy: In 1958, the Supreme Court ruled in NAACP v. Alabama that states could not mandate donor disclosure by nonprofit organizations. American’s were able to freely donate to advocacy groups without fear of backlash. Decades later, many state governments are attempting to retract this ruling and force nonprofit groups to disclose complete lists of their donors, which would publicly expose private information like phone numbers and addresses. The Liberty Justice Center is filing free speech cases challenging state statutes that mandate donor disclosure from issue advocacy organizations. In each case, we seek to place the burden of proof on government, rather than on nonprofit organizations. We argue that the baseline should be preserving privacy, and the government must show a compelling need for collecting private information.

School choice litigation: For many families, school choice opportunities make a life-changing difference for families. Students who otherwise would be stuck in a failing neighborhood school have the opportunity to excel through programs like Education Savings Accounts (ESAs), tax credit scholarships and school vouchers. Without them, many children would not be able to attend the school that best suits their needs. We continue to provide legal counsel to school choice advocates and allies in states on a variety of legal questions.