Supreme Court lays out new test for determining when public officials can be sued for blocking users on social media
Source: CBS News
March 15, 2024 / 10:47 AM EDT
Washington — The Supreme Court on Friday clarified when a public official who blocks a constituent on social media may be sued for doing so. It sent a pair of disputes over whether local officials crossed a constitutional line when they blocked users for Facebook comments back to lower courts for further proceedings.
In a unanimous opinion written by Justice Amy Coney Barrett in the first case, which involves a city manager from Port Huron, Michigan, the court laid out a two-pronged test for determining when a public official's speech on social media is attributable to the government and can therefore lead to litigation.
Under the new standard, an official's social-media activity constitutes state action only if that official had actual authority to speak on the government's behalf, and "purported to exercise" that authority when speaking on social media. Social media users may then sue public officials for blocking them if that test is met.
The court said the standard that it laid out in its opinion differs from those applied by lower courts in the two cases involving public officials who blocked constituents on social media, and it sent the disputes back for additional proceedings consistent with its decision.
Read more: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/supreme-court-test-public-blocking-users-social-media/
Link to SCOTUS opinion (PDF) - https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/23pdf/22-611_ap6c.pdf
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