In a major blow to the Trump administration, a federal appeals court suggested this week that it might reduce the scope of a Washington, D.C., ‘gag order’ imposed on fitness trackers and websites like Yelp and Angie’s List.
The ‘gag order’ is commonly referred to as the District of Columbia’s Non-Disparagement Clause, which prevents people from making comments that are derogatory or disparaging about businesses in the district, even if they’re true.
The dissenting opinion by U.S. Circuit Judge Harry Edwards, which was joined by Chief Judge Merrick Garland, argues that the clause is overly broad and violates the First Amendment’s guarantee of freedom of speech.
The opinion points out that the clause can be used to prevent reviews from customers who are complaining about poor service or products, or who simply wanted to “vent” their dissatisfaction. These types of reviews are protected by the First Amendment, according to the ruling.
The court also suggested that it might not want to uphold an injunction that would ban “all unfavorable statements regarding multiple businesses.” Instead, they suggested that the court might reduce the scope of the injunction so that it would only apply to “specific falsehoods or isolated injury-causing statements about a given business.”
Overall, this is a huge win for the free speech rights of individuals in Washington, D.C. Even if the full appeals court doesn’t ultimately rule in favor of overturning the District of Columbia’s Non-Disparagement Clause, customers in Washington, D.C. can feel a bit more assured that their right to free speech is still intact.
