Lewis F. Powell Jr.

Powell creates Central Hudson test expanding corporate commercial speech rights

1980-06-20 00:00:00 +0000 UTC | Importance: 6/10

Justice Lewis Powell delivers 8-1 majority opinion in Central Hudson Gas & Electric Corp. v. Public Service Commission of New York (447 U.S. 557), striking down New York ban on utility promotional advertising and establishing four-part “Central Hudson test” for commercial speech …

Lewis F. Powell Jr. Supreme Court of the United States Central Hudson Gas & Electric Corporation New York Public Service Commission commercial-speech-rights central-hudson-test corporate-advertising-rights powell-memo-implementation utility-regulation +1 more

Powell delivers Bellotti decision establishing corporate First Amendment rights

1978-04-26 00:00:00 +0000 UTC | Importance: 6/10

Justice Lewis Powell delivers majority opinion in First National Bank of Boston v. Bellotti (435 U.S. 765), establishing for first time that corporations have First Amendment speech rights to influence ballot initiatives and political campaigns. Powell’s 5-4 decision strikes down Massachusetts …

Lewis F. Powell Jr. Supreme Court of the United States First National Bank of Boston Francis X. Bellotti (Massachusetts Attorney General) Corporate Interests corporate-speech-rights first-amendment bellotti-decision powell-memo-implementation campaign-finance +1 more

Powell Expands Corporate Speech Rights in Virginia State Board of Pharmacy Decision

1976-05-24 00:00:00 +0000 UTC | Importance: 8/10

Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. authors the majority opinion in Virginia State Board of Pharmacy v. Virginia Citizens Consumer Council, establishing First Amendment protection for commercial speech by striking down state restrictions on prescription drug price advertising. This landmark decision creates …

Lewis F. Powell Jr. William Brennan Warren Burger Byron White Thurgood Marshall +1 more commercial-speech first-amendment corporate-rights judicial-capture constitutional-expansion

Supreme Court Rules Money Is Speech in Buckley v. Valeo

1976-01-30 00:00:00 +0000 UTC | Importance: 10/10

On January 30, 1976, the Supreme Court issued its landmark per curiam decision in Buckley v. Valeo, fundamentally transforming American campaign finance law by establishing that spending money on political campaigns constitutes protected speech under the First Amendment. The case challenged the …

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U.S. Chamber of Commerce Board Adopts Powell Memo Task Force Recommendations

1973-11-08 00:00:00 +0000 UTC | Importance: 9/10

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors formally adopts recommendations from a 40-member task force of business executives convened to review and implement Lewis Powell’s 1971 memo. The task force, comprised of executives from U.S. Steel, General Electric, ABC, General Motors, CBS, 3M, …

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Powell Memo Leaked to Public, Exposing Corporate Institutional Capture Blueprint

1972-09-28 00:00:00 +0000 UTC | Importance: 8/10

Syndicated columnist Jack Anderson publishes the confidential Powell Memo in his “Washington Merry Go Round” column, exposing Lewis Powell’s August 1971 corporate blueprint for institutional capture to public scrutiny. The leak occurs over a year after Powell wrote the memo and …

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Lewis Powell Sworn in as Supreme Court Justice, Begins Implementing Corporate Blueprint

1972-01-07 00:00:00 +0000 UTC | Importance: 9/10

Lewis F. Powell Jr. was sworn in as Associate Justice of the Supreme Court on January 7, 1972, after being nominated by President Nixon and confirmed by the Senate with an overwhelming 89-1 vote. A corporate lawyer with board memberships in 11 major corporations, Powell’s appointment …

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Nixon Nominates Lewis Powell to Supreme Court Two Months After Corporate Blueprint Memo

1971-10-22 00:00:00 +0000 UTC | Importance: 10/10

President Richard Nixon nominates Lewis F. Powell Jr. to the Supreme Court just two months after Powell authored his secret corporate blueprint memo to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce on August 23, 1971. Amidst a rare opportunity to reshape the Supreme Court, Nixon nominates Powell alongside William …

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Nixon nominates Lewis Powell to Supreme Court two months after corporate blueprint memo

1971-10-21 00:00:00 +0000 UTC | Importance: 6/10

President Nixon nominates corporate lawyer Lewis Powell to Supreme Court as Associate Justice, just 59 days after Powell wrote confidential memo to Chamber of Commerce calling for business to acquire “political power” and use courts as “most important instrument for social, …

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Lewis Powell Writes Landmark Memo Blueprinting Corporate Institutional Capture Strategy

1971-08-23 00:00:00 +0000 UTC | Importance: 9/10

Corporate lawyer Lewis Powell drafts a confidential 34-page memorandum to Eugene B. Sydnor Jr., Chair of Education Committee of U.S. Chamber of Commerce, titled “Attack On American Free Enterprise System.” This document provides a comprehensive, systematic blueprint for corporate capture …

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