Docket Report: First Choice Women’s Resource Centers v. Platkin

[I’m a little behind on the docket due to the holidays and a few competing deadlines. As I catch up, many of the docket entries will be more abbreviated.] In First Choice Women’s Resource Centers v. Platkin, the Court considers an important First Amendment issue wrapped up in a ripeness issue. The state of New Jersey sought donor records from First Choice, a “faith based non-profit,” and they claimed that the subpoena violated the First Amendment. The district court held that the issue was not yet ripe, as it was not clear that the non-profit would face sanctions for non-compliance. Ripeness is a doctrine about timing, in which courts defer cases that have not developed sufficiently to be heard. The Third Circuit affirmed the district court. The model confidently predicts that the Court will reverse the Third Circuit—they will see First Amendment concerns as sufficiently ripe, even with the issue of sanctions unclear. Sotomayor is the most likely dissent, though even she is more likely to reverse than not.