Case Categories: Solicitation and Pamphleteering

• Breard v. Alexandria (1951)

  Breard v. Alexandria (1951) upheld a city ordinance prohibiting unsolicited door-to-door sales, ruling that the ordinance did not violate the First Amendment...

• Cantwell v. Connecticut (1940)

  A 1940 Supreme Court landmark decision in Cantwell v. Connecticut affirmed the religious freedom rights of a Jehovah's Witness man to go door-to-door, despite...

• Cox v. New Hampshire (1941)

  Cox v. New Hampshire (1941) upheld Jehovah's Witnesses' conviction for parading without a permit, ruling that their First Amendments rights had not been...

• Follett v. Town of McCormick (1944)

  Follett v. Town of McCormick (1944) invalidated a tax on selling religious publications door-to-door using the First Amendment to reject this restriction on...

• Hynes v. Mayor of Oradell (1976)

  In Hynes v. Mayor of Oradell (1976), the Court said an ordinance requiring door-to-door canvassers to notify the police was vague and violated the First...

• Largent v. Texas (1943)

  Largent v Texas (1943) said giving a city mayor the power to determine who can distribute pamphlets is censorship and not allowed under the First Amendment...

• Lovell v. City of Griffin (1938)

  Lovell v. City of Griffin (1938) overturned the conviction of a Jehovah's Witness who sold a pamphlet without getting prior permission from the city on First...

• Martin v. City of Struthers (1943)

  In Martin v. City of Struthers (1943), the Court overturned a ruling that upheld the conviction of a door-to-door religious solicitor in a case focusing on...

• Murdock v. Pennsylvania (1943)

  Murdock v. Pennsylvania (1943) invalidated a city ordinance that required solicitors to obtain a license. The Court found the law infringed on the First...

• Prince v. Massachusetts (1944)

  Prince v. Massachusetts (1944) upheld a state regulation prohibiting children from selling newspapers in public places, finding it was not in violation of the...

• Schneider v. State (1939)

  Schneider v. State (1939) invalidated several city ordinances that restricted the distribution of handbills, ruling that the laws infringed on the First...

• Staub v. City of Baxley (1958)

  Staub v. City of Baxley (1958) invalidated a city ordinance requiring a permit before soliciting residents to join their organization, ruling it violated the...

• Watchtower Bible and Tract Society v. Village of Stratton (2002)

  Watchtower Bible and Tract Society v. Village of Stratton (2002) said an ordinance making it a misdemeanor to canvass door-to-door without a permit violated the...