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Former choose suspended over Fb posts seeks reduction from SCOTUS
Might 1, 2026, 10:15 am CDT
Suspended Pennsylvania Decide Mark B. Cohen was eliminated after the state court docket deemed the “tone” and the “quantity” of 66 Fb posts to be partisan. (Picture from the Philadelphia Courtroom of Frequent Pleas)
A former Pennsylvania choose who was suspended and misplaced his pension over Fb posts has appealed to the U.S. Supreme Courtroom, looking for to resolve a dispute over the constitutional limits on limiting judicial speech.
DLA Piper filed a petition final week asking the Supreme Courtroom to evaluate the case of former Pennsylvania Decide Mark B. Cohen, who was eliminated after the state court docket deemed the “tone” and the “quantity” of 66 Fb posts to be partisan, Regulation.com studies.
The Pennsylvania Supreme Courtroom had upheld the sanctions earlier this yr after making use of a authorities‑worker balancing take a look at from the Supreme Courtroom’s 1968 ruling in Pickering v. Board of Schooling.
Ilana H. Eisenstein of DLA Piper in Philadelphia represents Cohen.
“Permitting judges to be disciplined primarily based on the perceived ‘tone’ or ‘quantity’ of lawful speech promotes arbitrary enforcement, invitations political interference within the judicial department, and threatens to undermine the rule of legislation,” Eisenstein mentioned in an emailed remark to Regulation.com. “This case presents an pressing alternative for the court docket to revive constitutional readability and reestablish the First Modification’s safety of the rights of sitting judges to talk on issues of public concern.”
The petition argues that this strategy conflicts with Supreme Courtroom precedent and highlights a deep cut up amongst federal appellate courts and state excessive courts over how restrictions on judicial speech must be evaluated, based on the story. Cohen needs the court docket to resolve whether or not strict scrutiny, which requires a compelling governmental curiosity and narrowly tailor-made means, applies to limits on judges’ speech.
See additionally:
Decide’s ‘distinctive’ defiance following self-discipline choice is unmatched, suspension choice says
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