NetChoice appealed a decision Friday of a district court that declined to block a Tennessee law requiring that social media companies verify the age of account holders and gain parental consent from users younger than 18 before they can open accounts. The organization appealed the decision to the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
NetChoice Lawsuits
NetChoice lawsuits involve a series of high-profile legal challenges brought by the tech industry trade group NetChoice against state laws regulating online content moderation and user data practices. The group has sued states including Texas and Florida, arguing that their social media laws violate the First Amendment and conflict with federal protections for online platforms. These cases, now before federal appeals courts and potentially the U.S. Supreme Court, could set sweeping precedents for how states can govern digital platforms’ handling of speech, privacy, and user data.
NetChoice asked the U.S. Supreme Court to quickly reinstate a preliminary injunction on a Mississippi age-verification law in an emergency application Monday. The tech group appealed just days after the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals granted a stay of HB-1126 with no explanation, allowing it to go into effect for the time being (see 2507170019).
A Mississippi law requiring parental consent for those younger than 18 to create accounts with certain digital service providers will go into effect for now, despite pending litigation against it.
NetChoice asked the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to continue to block a Mississippi age-verification law that a district court enjoined in June (see 2506180051) while the case is pending. Yet Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch (R) noted in a July 2 court document that the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision in Free Speech Coalition, Inc. v. Paxton affirms age-verification measures. Fitch has vowed to fight for the "commonsense" law (see 2506200009).
Several advocacy groups filed amicus briefs supporting NetChoice and the Computer & Communications Industry Association (CCIA) in a case challenging a 2023 law requiring social media companies to verify users’ ages and obtain parental consent for children younger than 18.
NetChoice promoted Paul Taske to co-director of its litigation center, the trade association announced Tuesday. He was previously the center's associate director. Before joining NetChoice, Taske served at the Ohio Supreme Court under Justice Pat DeWine and was a junior fellow for the Ayn Rand Institute.
Responding to a suit against New York over a state law requiring that retailers disclose when they are using algorithmic pricing, privacy lawyer Heidi Saas argued that the First Amendment does not protect surveillance pricing.
Federal court Judge Halil Ozerden granted a stay of proceedings in a Mississippi social media age-verification law case while an appeal to the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals is pending. The parties in the case, NetChoice and Attorney General Lynn Fitch (R), jointly moved for the stay on Wednesday (see 2507020027).
Trade association NetChoice and Mississippi AG Lynn Fitch (R) jointly moved for a stay of proceedings of a social media age-verification law case while Fitch's appeal to the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals is pending.
The Free Speech Coalition said it’s weighing legal options as age-verification laws took effect Tuesday in multiple states.