The Institute for Justice litigates to protect the constitutional rights of all Americans. IJ defends ordinary people who want to earn an honest living, own and enjoy their property, speak freely, and give their children a good education but find that the government is standing in their way.
We fight to hold government officials accountable when they violate constitutional rights and to prevent governments at all levels from bending the rules to expand their power or advance illegitimate ends.
IJ wins three out of four cases through outright courtroom victories or legislative change prompted by our lawsuits.
Featured Cases
Economic Liberty | Fresh Start
Texas Fresh Start Social Worker
Texas
Texas—and the country—face a two-fold problem: an exploding mental health and substance abuse crisis and a dire shortage of professional social workers to address those issues. Yet rather than make it easier for qualified applicants to obtain social work licenses and start helping people, Texas is doing the opposite. In 2019, the state passed a lifetime ban prohibiting anyone with…
4th Amendment Project | Private Property
Norfolk, VA Camera Surveillance
Norfolk, Virginia has installed more than 170 cameras across the city that watch drivers’ every movement. Now, two Norfolk-area residents have teamed up with the Institute for Justice to file a federal lawsuit challenging the…
Private Property | Private Solutions to Public Problems | Right to Shelter | Zoning Justice Project
Flathead Warming Center
The Flathead Warming Center—an emergency shelter in Kalispell, Montana—suffered a cruel blow as winter approaches. On September 16, 2024, the Kalispell City Council voted 6-3 to revoke the Warming Center’s permit, even though it has…
Private Property | SWAT Destruction
Martin v. United States
FBI agents raided the wrong home in suburban Atlanta. Now the federal government refuses to compensate the victims even though Congress passed a law permitting suits for damages caused by federal employees.
Virginia Certificate of Need
Virginia’s certificate of need program actually makes it illegal to offer new medical services or purchase certain types of medical equipment without first obtaining a special permission slip from the government.
Economic Liberty | First Amendment | Occupational Licensing | Occupational Speech
North Carolina Free Speech
This caveman blogger fought for free speech and Internet freedom.
Norfolk, VA Sign
In a double blow to free speech and property rights, Norfolk, Va., tried not only to take a thriving business through its power of eminent domain but also censor a highly visible sign that protested…
Economic Liberty | Occupational Licensing | Transportation
Portland Sedans
Portland, Ore., cannot constitutionally set transportation prices and make limousine and sedan customers wait for service merely to protect taxis from competition.
Economic Liberty | Occupational Licensing
IRS Tax Preparers
IJ successfully challenged the IRS’s authority to license tax return preparers. If the licensing scheme had not been struck down, some 350,000 tax return preparers would have been burdened by the new regulations, much to…
Economic Liberty | Occupational Licensing | Teeth Whitening
Connecticut Teeth Whitening
Connecticut’s prohibition on non-dentist teeth whitening was never about protecting consumers; it was about protecting dentists from honest competition.
Fountain Hills, Ariz. Speech
Arizona wants to bar people from joining together to protest local ballot measures without first registering with the government.
Private Property | Rental Caps
Minnesota Rental Caps
Government officials in Winona, Minn., are imposing a restriction on the number of homeowners who can rent out their properties, harming both homeowners and renters alike. Not only is this policy unwise, it is also…
Mississippi Citizen Speech
Thanks to Mississippi’s burdensome campaign finance laws, groups of concerned citizens need more than just their opinions to speak about politics. They also need a lawyer.
Economic Liberty | Transportation
Lake Chelan Ferries
Jim and Cliff Courtney have a plan to bring economic prosperity to their small community. Unfortunately, the state of Washington has sunk their plan with a law that requires them to obtain a certificate of…