Enter your email address to subscribe to updates to this case (by doing so, you are accepting the terms in our privacy policy):
Houston Community College System v. Wilson
| Docket No. | Op. Below | Argument | Opinion | Vote | Author | Term |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20-804 | 5th Cir. | Nov 2, 2021 | Mar 24, 2022 | 9-0 | Gorsuch | OT 2021 |
Holding: Respondent David Wilson does not possess an actionable First Amendment claim arising from his purely verbal censure by the Board of Trustees of the Houston Community College System.
Judgment: Reversed, 9-0, in an opinion by Justice Gorsuch on March 24, 2022.
SCOTUSblog Coverage
- College board’s censure of one of its members didn’t violate First Amendment, justices rule (Amy Howe, March 24, 2022)
- Announcement of opinions for Thursday, March 24 (complete) (Angie Gou, March 24, 2022)
- Justices seek narrow ruling on authority of public bodies to censure their own members (Amy Howe, November 2, 2021)
- A community-college spat leads to a First Amendment retaliation claim (Amy Howe, November 1, 2021)
- New York Second Amendment case headlines November argument calendar (Amy Howe, August 16, 2021)
- Justices add new cases on state secrets, free speech (Amy Howe, April 26, 2021)
- Sovereign immunity, legislative censure and another habeas question (John Elwood, April 21, 2021)
- Petitions of the week: Three Second Amendment petitions and a Wiretap Act claim against Facebook (Andrew Hamm, January 15, 2021)
| Date | Proceedings and Orders |
|---|---|
| Dec 11 2020 | Petition for a writ of certiorari filed. (Response due January 13, 2021) |
| Dec 30 2020 | Motion to extend the time to file a response from January 13, 2021 to February 12, 2021, submitted to The Clerk. |
| Dec 31 2020 | Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is extended to and including February 12, 2021. |
| Jan 13 2021 | Brief amicus curiae of Texas Association of School Boards Legal Assistance Fund filed. |
| Jan 29 2021 | Motion to extend the time to file a response from February 12, 2021 to March 22, 2021, submitted to The Clerk. |
| Feb 01 2021 | Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is further extended to and including March 22, 2021. |
| Mar 22 2021 | Brief of respondent David Buren Wilson in opposition filed. |
| Mar 26 2021 | Letter waiving the 14-day waiting period for the filing of a reply pursuant to Rule 15.5 filed. |
| Mar 31 2021 | DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 4/16/2021. |
| Mar 31 2021 | Reply of petitioner Houston Community College System filed. (Distributed) |
| Apr 19 2021 | DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 4/23/2021. |
| Apr 26 2021 | Petition GRANTED. |
| Jun 01 2021 | Motion for an extension of time to file the briefs on the merits filed. |
| Jun 04 2021 | Motion to extend the time to file the briefs on the merits granted. The time to file the joint appendix and petitioner's brief on the merits is extended to and including July 14, 2021. The time to file respondent's brief on the merits is extended to and including September 17, 2021. |
| Jun 24 2021 | Blanket Consent filed by Petitioner, Houston Community College System |
| Jun 24 2021 | Blanket Consent filed by Respondent, David Buren Wilson |
| Jul 14 2021 | Brief of petitioner Houston Community College System filed. |
| Jul 14 2021 | Joint appendix filed. (Statement of costs filed) |
| Jul 19 2021 | Brief amici curiae of Texas Association of School Boards Legal Assistance Fund, et al. filed. |
| Jul 20 2021 | Brief amicus curiae of Foundation for Individual Rights in Education in support of neither party filed. |
| Jul 21 2021 | Brief amicus curiae of United States filed. |
| Jul 21 2021 | Brief amicus curiae of Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges filed. |
| Jul 21 2021 | Brief amici curiae of The State of Texas, et al. filed. |
| Jul 21 2021 | Brief amicus curiae of American Jewish Committee filed. |
| Aug 16 2021 | ARGUMENT SET FOR Tuesday, November 2, 2021. |
| Sep 01 2021 | Record requested from the U.S.C.A. 5th Circuit. |
| Sep 01 2021 | The record from the U.S.C.A. 5th Circuit is electronic and located on Pacer. |
| Sep 17 2021 | Brief of respondent David Buren Wilson filed. (Distributed) |
| Sep 21 2021 | CIRCULATED |
| Sep 24 2021 | Brief amici curiae of American Civil Liberties Union, et al. filed. (Distributed) |
| Sep 24 2021 | Motion of the Acting Solicitor General for leave to participate in oral argument as amicus curiae, for divided argument, and for enlargement of time for oral argument filed. |
| Oct 12 2021 | Motion of the Acting Solicitor General for leave to participate in oral argument as amicus curiae, for divided argument, and for enlargement of time for oral argument GRANTED. |
| Oct 15 2021 | Reply of petitioner Houston Community College System filed. (Distributed) |
| Oct 18 2021 | The time for oral argument is allotted as follows: 20 minutes for petitioner, 15 minutes for the Acting Solicitor General, and 35 minutes for respondent. |
| Oct 28 2021 | The record from the U.S.D.C. Southern District of Texas has been electronically filed. |
| Nov 02 2021 | Argued. For petitioner: Richard A. Morris, Houston, Tex.; and Sopan Joshi, Assistant to the Solicitor General, Department of Justice, Washington, D. C. (for United States, as amicus curiae.) For respondent: MIchael B. Kimberly, Washington, D. C. |
| Mar 24 2022 | Judgment REVERSED. Gorsuch, J., delivered the opinion for a unanimous Court. |
| Apr 25 2022 | JUDGMENT ISSUED. |
