Our Cases

The Government Justice Center and several public policy centers filed a “friend of the court” brief in Jarchow v. State Bar of Wisconsin before the United States Supreme Court arguing that mandatory bar association fees are unconstitutional. Mandatory bar associations impose severe burdens on protected speech and association. It is a bedrock First Amendment principle that restrictions…

GJC Sues Public Campaign Finance Commission for Records                                     The Government Justice Center (GJC) filed a case against the New York State Public Campaign Finance Commission for not abiding by the Freedom of Information Law (FOIL).   The Public Campaign Finance Commission was created to re-write the Election Law, a matter of significant public interest. Accordingly,…

Current Status of Lawsuit: Filed June 25, 2019. Lori Smith’s Story Lori Smith loves horses and loves caring for them. Since being exposed to horses when she was young, she realized that she loved being around them. Like many horse lovers, she finds the majestic animals to have a calming effect on her soul. As she…

In early 2017, Mr. Whitehead tried to participate in Warren County’s decision-making regarding a contract dispute with a project vendor. Mr. Whitehead had discovered issues with a geo-thermal energy project and contract between Siemens Building Technologies, Inc. and Warren County, and his efforts led to the County questioning Siemens’ performance under the contract. It hired…

On May 4, 2018, the Government Justice Center filed an amicus curiae brief on behalf of the Empire Center for Public Policy in Police Benevolent Association of New York State, Inc. v. State of New York, et al., Case No. 525746 in the Third Department Appellate Division. The case relates to Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) requests made by…