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Practice Areas First Amendment

First Amendment

Defense and counsel for speech, press, and public access.

Practice Area Introduction

News organizations, broadcasters, and digital publishers rely on our First Amendment team to protect core freedoms while navigating defamation risk, newsroom subpoenas, prior restraints, and access to courts and records in Virginia and beyond. We move quickly, litigate precisely, and resolve matters with the clarity clients need.

Our Expertise

Our lawyers have represented media clients and other speakers across the full spectrum of First Amendment and media law. The team defends libel and business-tort claims in state and federal courts, pursues emergency relief to dissolve restraints on publication, and secures access to proceedings and judicial records. We brief and argue appeals, and we litigate records disputes under the federal Freedom of Information Act and the Virginia Freedom of Information Act for both requesters and public bodies.

Our First Amendment bench pairs trial experience with steady appellate advocacy. The team’s results include repeated wins for newspapers, television stations, and a weekly news magazine; summary judgment for a local newspaper later upheld by the Supreme Court of Virginia; and appellate decisions in the Fourth Circuit clarifying standards for defamation claims, as well as a successful federal FOIA challenge to the Department of Justice.

Our Approach

Senior trial and appellate counsel lead from the outset, right-sizing teams to control cost and maintain speed. We prepare early for injunction practice, marshal evidentiary and reporter’s-privilege arguments, and position cases for dismissal or summary judgment.

When public access is at stake, we act on compressed timelines, coordinating with newsroom and station counsel to protect ongoing coverage.

Outside the courtroom, we provide pre-publication and pre-broadcast review, subpoena response strategies, and newsroom policies that reduce exposure without compromising editorial judgment. This balance of urgency and judgment reflects the firm’s client-first model and cost-aware execution.

How We’re Different

Built for Trial and Appeal

Our First Amendment bench pairs trial experience with steady appellate advocacy.

Swift Support, Clear Direction

Clients get rapid response on emergencies and clear guidance on close calls.

Authors on Virginia Shield Law

We authored the Virginia chapter on Shield Laws in the Reporter’s Privilege Compendium, a 50-state survey on media privacy.

How We’re Different

Built for Trial and Appeal

Our First Amendment bench pairs trial experience with steady appellate advocacy.

Swift Support, Clear Direction

Clients get rapid response on emergencies and clear guidance on close calls.

Authors on Virginia Shield Law

We authored the Virginia chapter on Shield Laws in the Reporter’s Privilege Compendium, a 50-state survey on media privacy.

Meet the Attorneys

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