Justice Kagan on First Amendment

For John, BLUF:  What is OK in Gilbert, Arizona, will be OK in Lowell, once the decision is rendered.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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The New York Times talks to us about Associate Justice Elena Kagan and how her writings two decades ago still influence SCOTUS decisions.  The headline is "19 Years Later, Article by Kagan Echoes at the Supreme Court".  The Reporter is Mr Adam Liptak.  From the article:

What is the best way for a scholar to influence the Supreme Court through a law review article? Join the court.

In 1996, a young professor named Elena Kagan published an article in The University of Chicago Law Review.  It sketched a way to make sense of the Supreme Court’s approach to the First Amendment.

Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. cited the article in his majority opinion in a decision in June that struck down buffer zones for demonstrators around abortion clinics in Massachusetts.

In a case to be argued next week,♠ the Kagan article is featured in four briefs.  Solicitor General Donald B. Verrilli Jr. cites it twice, and a brief filed by two religious groups devotes four pages to it.

It is about municipal regulation of the size and duration of signs in the community of Gilbert, Arizona.

Regards  —  Cliff

♠  Clyde Reed, et al., Petitioners v. Town of Gilbert, Arizona, et al.  Actually argued on Monday, 12 January.  Transcript here.