How --Ewed Are We?

The American Constitution Society for Law and Policy invites you to attend:
Citizens United v. FEC: The Decision, Its Implications, and the Road Ahead

In a 5-4 decision issued on January 21, 2010, the Supreme Court held in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission that limitations on corporate funding of independent political broadcasts in candidate elections violate the First Amendment. The Court struck down a section of the Bipartisan Campaign Finance Reform Act that banned corporations and unions from broadcasting "electioneering communications" within 30 days of a primary or 60 days of a general election. In so doing, the Court overruled its 1990 decision in Austin v. Michigan Chamber of Commerce and generated substantial controversy - President Obama mentioned the decision in his State of the Union address and both the House and Senate have held hearings on the topic. Many questions linger in the wake of the decision. Does the decision represent a victory for the First Amendment or an opening for corruption of elections? What are the merits of mechanisms being considered by Congress as ways of dealing with the decision? In practical terms, what does the decision mean for corporations and unions? What does the overruling of Austin suggest about the Roberts Court and its relationship to precedent? These questions and others will be discussed by a panel of experts in campaign finance law.
The panel discussion will feature:
Moderator, Dahlia Lithwick, Senior Editor and Legal Correspondent, Slate.com
Jan W. Baran, Partner, Wiley Rein LLP
Laurence E. Gold, Of Counsel, Lichtman, Trister & Ross, PLLC; Associate General Counsel, AFL-CIO
James S. Portnoy, Chief Counsel, Corporate & Government Affairs at Kraft Foods
Joseph E. Sandler, Member, Sandler, Reiff & Young P.C.
Monica Youn, Counsel, Brennan Center for Justice, NYU School of Law.
Click here for more information and to register
Lunch will be provided at noon with the panel beginning promptly at 12:30 pm. Wednesday, February 24, 201012:00 - 3:00 pmThe National Press Club, Conference Rooms529 14th Street, NW, 13th FloorWashington, DC 20045

The American Constitution Society for Law and Policy (ACS) is one of the nation's leading progressive legal organizations. Founded in 2001, ACS is a rapidly growing network of lawyers, law students, scholars, judges, policymakers and other concerned individuals. Our mission is to promote the vitality of the U.S. Constitution and the fundamental values it expresses: individual rights and liberties, genuine equality, access to justice, democracy and the rule of law. For more information about the organization, which has established student chapters at more than 170 law schools around the country and lawyer chapters in over 30 cities, please visit www.acslaw.org.
American Constitution Societyemail: info@acslaw.orgphone: 202.393.6181web: http://www.acslaw.orgFollow ACS on Twitter: @ACSLaw.