United States First Circuit

In a suit concerning the limiting of participation in a town meeting to only registered voters, denial of a preliminary injunction mandating that the town permit plaintiffs to speak at the meeting is affirmed where: 1) forum analysis is inapposite because the town meeting is a legislative body in deliberation; 2) plaintiffs are not registered to vote in the town and therefore are not town meeting legislators; 3) the First Amendment does not give non-legislators the right to speak at meetings of deliberating legislative bodies, regardless of whether they own property or pay taxes; and 4) the First Amendment was not violated by the discretion vested in the town meeting moderator to recognize speakers.

Appellate Information

• Decided 11/29/2007
• Published 11/29/2007

Judges

• LYNCH, Circuit Judge., Before LYNCH, Circuit Judge, CAMPBELL and SELYA, Senior Circuit Judges.

Court

• United States First Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• Landis C. Best with whom Judith C. Knight, Joseph H. Zwicker, Choate Hall & Stewart LLP, Nicholas Boski, and Cahill Gordon & Reindel LLP were on brief for appellants.


• For Appellees:
  
• Nancy Frankel Pelletier with whom David S. Lawless and Robinson Donovan, P.C. were on brief for appellees.