Opinion ID: 149043
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 7

Heading: The Injunction Violated REBA's First Amendment Right to Petition

Text: There is an even more fundamental problem with the award of injunctive and declaratory relief based on REBA's having filed suit in state court. These awards undercut First Amendment protections given to the bringing of nonfrivolous lawsuits and allegations made in court pleadings. [7] Indeed, by its literal terms the injunction could be thought to enjoin REBA from taking this appeal. The right to petition the courts for redress implicates the First Amendment right of free speech and right to petition the government. See United Mine Workers of Am. v. Ill. State Bar Ass'n, 389 U.S. 217, 222, 88 S.Ct. 353, 19 L.Ed.2d 426 (1967); NAACP v. Button, 371 U.S. 415, 429, 83 S.Ct, 328, 9 L.Ed.2d 405 (1963); Powell v. Alexander, 391 F.3d 1, 16-17 (1st Cir.2004). These principles have long standing in our constitutional jurisprudence, and they include the right to file lawsuits that are not baseless. [8] BE & K Constr. Co. v. NLRB, 536 U.S. 516, 524-26, 530-31, 122 S.Ct. 2390, 153 L.Ed.2d 499 (2002); Prof'l Real Estate Investors, Inc. v. Columbia Pictures Indus., Inc., 508 U.S. 49, 56-61, 113 S.Ct. 1920, 123 L.Ed.2d 611 (1993); Bill Johnson's Rests., Inc. v. NLRB, 461 U.S. 731, 743-44, 103 S.Ct. 2161, 76 L.Ed.2d 277 (1983). As our certification of the question to the SJC demonstrates, REBA's bringing of the declaratory judgment action and its advocacy position were far from frivolous. Nor is the claim against REBA based on a claimed violation of a federal statute, such as the Sherman Act; [9] it is based on the Constitution. This case does not involve statutory regulation of the activity of various market players, say, for example, of lawyers functioning as debt collectors. Heintz v. Jenkins, 514 U.S. 291, 293-94, 299, 115 S.Ct. 1489, 131 L.Ed.2d 395 (1995) (holding that lawyers who regularly collect consumer debt through litigation may be considered debt collectors under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, 15 U.S.C. §§ 1692-1692o, and are therefore subject to liability for litigation activities); see also Jerman v. Carlisle, McNellie, Rini, Kramer & Ulrich LPA, ___ U.S. ___, 130 S.Ct. 1605, 1609-11, 176 L.Ed.2d 519 (2010). It is irrelevant to REBA's First Amendment protection that the district court ruled against REBA on the merits of REBA's claim that NREIS's activities were the unauthorized practice of law. This First Amendment protection exists whether or not REBA's nonfrivolous claims are ultimately found to be meritorious. BE & K Constr. Co., 536 U.S. at 532, 122 S.Ct. 2390. As the Supreme Court has pointed out, even if reasonably based suits are ultimately unsuccessful, such suits nonetheless advance some First Amendment interests, including raising matters of public concern and allowing the advancement and development of legal theories. Id. at 532, 122 S.Ct. 2390. The filing of such suits adds legitimacy to the court system as the designated forum to resolve disputes. Id. The district court's issuance of the injunction and declaratory relief transgressed those First Amendment principles.