United States Third Circuit

In a case involving the free speech rights of candidates for state judicial office, various provisions of Pennsylvania's Code of Judicial Conduct and Rules Governing Standards of Conduct of Magisterial District Justices were challenged by a non-profit organization that sought to elicit the political and legal views of state judicial candidates for dissemination to its members and the public. Dismissal of the organization's action for declaratory and injunctive relief is affirmed as it lacked standing because: 1) in order to maintain a "right to listen" claim, plaintiff had to clearly establish the existence of a "willing speaker"; 2) in order to show the existence of a willing speaker, a party must at least demonstrate that but for a regulation, a speaker subject to it would be willing to speak; and 3) the organization failed to establish the presence of a willing speaker.

Appellate Information

• Argued 12/04/2006
• Decided 05/25/2007
• Published 05/25/2007

Judges

• Before:  SCIRICA, Chief Judge , and AMBRO, Circuit Judges, and BAYLSON, District Judge .

Court

• United States Third Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• James Bopp, Jr. (Argued), Anita Y. Woudenberg, Thomas J. Marzen, Bopp, Coleson & Bostrom, Terre Haute, IN, Leonard G. Brown, III, Randall L. Wenger, Clymer & Musser, Lancaster, PA, Attorneys for Appellants.


• For Appellees:
  
• David M. Donaldson (Argued), Administrative Office of PA Courts, Philadelphia, PA, Attorney for Appellees.