On January 21, 2010, the United States Supreme Court issued its decision in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission. This decision struck down the prohibition contained in the 2002 Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 (also known as the McCain-Feingold Act) that barred corporations from using general treasury funds to engage in an “electioneering communication,” which was broadly defined as any broadcast cable or satellite communication that refers to a clearly identified candidate for federal office that is made within thirty days before a primary or sixty days before a general election on the basis that it violated the First Amendment’s protection of freedom of speech.
The Court held that the prohibition on electioneering communications chilled corporations’ right to free speech because it essentially required them to obtain advance permission from the Federal Election Commission to engage in speech mentioning a candidate for federal office, during the time frames that such speech was relevant, to avoid the possible prosecution for a federal felony.
For additional information on how the Supreme Court’s decision in the Citizens United case has affected your corporation’s ability to engage in political speech, please contact Scott C. Allan.