CINCINNATI, Ohio—The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit today granted NetChoice’s motion to stay the mandate in NetChoice v. Yost, keeping the appellate court’s June 18 decision from taking effect.
“We are glad the Sixth Circuit recognized what’s at stake and preserved the status quo—where access to lawful speech is not subject to government-imposed barriers,” said Paul Taske, Director of the NetChoice Litigation Center.
“Today’s order preserves Ohioans’ First Amendment rights and allows NetChoice time to petition the Supreme Court for review. Ohio’s law would deprive minors of access to lawful speech unless they present a government-mandated permission slip. That simply does not square with the First Amendment. We remain confident the law will ultimately be struck down.”
The underlying case challenges Ohio’s Parental Notification by Social Media Operators Act, which requires covered websites to obtain verifiable parental consent before allowing children under 16 to create accounts. The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio had granted summary judgment to NetChoice and permanently enjoined the law, finding it an unconstitutional, content-based restriction on speech.
The Sixth Circuit’s split decision broke with a clear national consensus. Federal courts across the country have repeatedly blocked similar laws in states like Arkansas, Louisiana, and Georgia because they violate basic First Amendment principles. Websites possess clear editorial discretion to curate online communities under Moody v. NetChoice, and the government cannot sentence speech on the internet to death by a thousand cuts.
Read the court’s order here.
Find full case resources for NetChoice v. Yost here.
Please contact press@netchoice.org with inquiries.