Road Work Ahead: How Four 2024 Cases May Be Reshaping First Amendment Scrutiny

This episode examines how the Supreme Court's 2024-25 term may be quietly reshaping First Amendment doctrine through four cases that suggest new approaches to constitutional scrutiny levels.

We analyze how the Court appears to be moving away from the mechanical application of strict, intermediate, and rational basis review established in Reed v. Town of Gilbert, instead developing more contextual approaches that consider traditional government authority, institutional expertise, and competing constitutional values.

The episode explores Catholic Charities Bureau's traditional strict scrutiny analysis of denominational discrimination, TikTok's content-neutral treatment of national security regulations, Free Speech Coalition's novel "partial protection" theory for age verification requirements, and Mahmoud's expansion of religious liberty protection in public schools.

Cases Covered:

1. Catholic Charities Bureau, Inc. v. Wisconsin Labor & Industry Review Commission | Case No. 24-154 | Opinion Summary: Here;
2. TikTok Inc. v. Garland | Case No. 24-656, 24-657 | Opinion Summary: Here;
3. Free Speech Coalition Inc. v. Paxton | Case No. 23-1122 | Opinion Summary: Here; and
4. Mahmoud v. Taylor | Case No. 24-297 | Opinion Summary: Here.

Key Precedents Referenced:

1. Reed v. Town of Gilbert;
2. Employment Division v. Smith;
3. Wisconsin v. Yoder;
4. Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. v. FCC; and
5. Larson v. Valente.