Tag: Metromedia

Michael Wright on LD Management v Kentucky

On May 5, 2020, the American Bar Association – which had rated Judge Justin Walker “unqualified” to serve as a district judge – rated him “well qualified” to sit on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, often called the second most important court in the nation. His decision in L.D. […]

Michael Wright on Rethinking Reed and Commercial Speech.

By Michael F Wright Ever since Metromedia, Inc. v. City of San Diego (1981), courts have been applying an ultra-lenient version of intermediate scrutiny under Central Hudson Gas & Electric Co. v. Public Service Commission (1980) to content-based regulation of commercial signs. Then in Reed v. Town of Gilbert, Arizona […]

Is Metromedia Binding?

By Michael Wright, Billboard Attorney. Everyone knows that the Supreme Court’s decision in Metromedia, Inc. v. City of San Diego (1981) is the leading case on sign regulation. For 38 years, courts have followed Metromedia’s four-justice plurality opinion in upholding laws that selectively ban offsite commercial signs. But the 4-2-3 […]

Who speaks on billboards? It’s a long list.

The billboard-tax lawsuit in Cincinnati shines a spotlight on “billboard speech.” Insider collected samples from around the country, highlighting the diversity of speakers expressing viewpoints and ideas. On November 9, the judge in the Cincinnati billboard-tax case made the court’s injunction against the targeted tax permanent.  A targeted tax on […]

Do Billboards Speak?

Thought Leadership from  Nancy Fletcher, OAAA President and CEO Do billboards “speak?” Yes, said a judge in Cincinnati who invalidated the city’s new targeted tax on billboards. After six days of testimony, Common Pleas Court Judge Curt C. Hartman issued an injunction October 17 that blocked Cincinnati’s billboard tax. Billboards […]