Won and Settled
Michigan
2018
“Bias Response Teams are fundamentally un-American and have no place on college campuses. We have an epidemic on our hands in the higher education system—universities are establishing rules and protocols that create a dangerous environment in which free speech protections under the First Amendment no longer exist.”
Nicole Neily
Speech First, a national membership group of students, alumni, and others that defends free speech on campus, sued the University of Michigan over its broad definitions of “harassment” and “bullying” and its Bias Response Team. In this settlement agreement, filed in October 2019, the university agreed to three terms: The settlement followed a September 2019 […]
On September 23, 2019, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit ruled in Speech First v. Schlissel. Speech First, a national membership group of students, alumni, and others that defends free speech on campus, had challenged the University of Michigan’s policy banning bullying and harassing behavior and its Bias Response Team, arguing that […]
On December 27, 2018, Speech First, a national membership group of students, alumni, and others that defends free speech on campus, filed a reply brief in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit in Speech First v. Schlissel, appealing the trial court’s refusal to block the University of Michigan’s policies. The brief argued: […]
On November 20, 2018, the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) and Alliance Defending Freedom filed an amicus (“friend of the court”) brief in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit supporting Speech First, a national membership group of students, alumni, and others that defends free speech on campus, in Speech First […]
Speech First, a national membership group of students, alumni, and others that defends free speech on campus, filed this opening brief in the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals. It asks the appeals court to reverse a lower court’s refusal to block the University of Michigan’s speech policies while the case goes on. The brief makes […]
On August 6, 2018, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan denied Speech First’s motion for a preliminary injunction against the University of Michigan. The court held that Speech First lacked standing to challenge the university’s Bias Response Team and that its challenges to the policy definitions the university had since eliminated […]
On June 29, 2018, Speech First, a national membership group of students, alumni, and others that defends free speech on campus, filed a reply brief in Speech First v. Schlissel in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, supporting its request for a preliminary injunction. The brief argued: Speech First asked the […]
Much ink has been spilled over the past few months debating whether or not there’s a free-speech “crisis” on campuses. But focusing on the number of speech-related flare-ups doesn’t capture the full scope of what’s really taking place at America’s colleges and universities — because the real threat to speech on campus is far more […]
In May 2018, Speech First, a national membership group of students, alumni, and others that defends free speech on campus, filed its first lawsuit, against the University of Michigan, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan (Speech First v. Schlissel et al.). The goal: to help restore free speech and expression […]
On May 8, 2018, Speech First, a national membership group of students, alumni, and others that defends free speech on campus, sued University of Michigan President Mark Schlissel and other university officials in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan. The lawsuit claims the university’s speech rules violate the First and Fourteenth […]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Tuesday, May 8, 2018 Speech First Files Federal Lawsuit Challenging University of Michigan Speech Code and Bias Response Team “Bias Response Teams are fundamentally un-American and have no place on college campuses. We have an epidemic on our hands in the higher education system—universities are establishing rules and protocols that create a […]
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