Free Speech - Law Dictionary Search Results
Home Dictionary Name: free speechfree speech
free speech 1 : speech that is protected by the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution [setting off an alarm bell is not free speech "A. M. Dershowitz"] 2 : freedom of speech [an unconstitutional restraint on free speech "National Law Journal"] ...
symbolic speech
symbolic speech : conduct that is intended to convey a particular message which is likely to be understood by those viewing it [it is well established that wearing certain clothing can be a form of protected symbolic speech "City of Harvard v. Gaut, 660 N.E.2d 259 (1996)"] compare commercial speech, pure speech NOTE: Symbolic speech is entitled to free speech protection under the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution unless its regulation is within the constitutional power of the government and is justified by an important government interest, and the restriction placed on it by regulation is no greater than is essential to the furtherance of that interest. ...
freedom of speech
freedom of speech :the right to express information, ideas, and opinions free of government restrictions based on content and subject only to reasonable limitations (as the power of the government to avoid a clear and present danger) esp. as guaranteed by the First and Fourteenth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution see also free speech compare censorship, prior restraint ...
speech
speech : words or conduct used to communicate or express a thought : expression see also commercial speech, freedom of speech, free speech, obscene, symbolic speech Amendment I to the Constitution in the back matter ...
free expression
free expression : free speech ...
overbreadth
overbreadth 1 : the quality or state of being overbroad [a statute void for ] 2 : a doctrine in constitutional law: a law that prohibits protected conduct (as free speech) as part of its reach may be struck down as unconstitutional if the threat to protected activity is a substantial effect and if it cannot be clearly removed ;also : a doctrine allowing a defendant accused of unprotected conduct to challenge a law for overbreadth esp. in the area of free speech ...
commercial speech
commercial speech : speech (as advertising) that proposes a commercial transaction compare pure speech, symbolic speech NOTE: Commercial speech is entitled to a lesser level of protection under the First Amendment than speech which is an expression of one's thoughts. ...
freedom of association
freedom of association :the right guaranteed esp. by the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution to join with others either in personal relationships or as part of a group usu. having a common viewpoint or purpose and often exercising the right to assemble and to free speech ...
obscene
obscene [Middle French, from Latin obscenus obscaenus indecent, lewd] : extremely or deeply offensive according to contemporary community standards of morality or decency see also Roth v. United States in the Important Cases section NOTE: The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that obscene applies to materials that appeal predominantly to a prurient interest in sexual conduct, depict or describe sexual conduct in a patently offensive way, and lack serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value. Material or expression deemed obscene by the court is not protected by the free speech guarantee of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. ...
true threat
true threat : a threat that a reasonable person would interpret as a real and serious communication of an intent to inflict harm NOTE: True threats are not protected as free speech by the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and render the person making the threat liable to criminal prosecution. ...
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