Bellotti-Decision

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 Authors Bellotti Decision Granting Corporations First Amendment Political Rights

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

Justice Lewis Powell authors the majority opinion in First National Bank of Boston v. Bellotti, holding for the first time that corporations have First Amendment rights to influence political ballot questions through unlimited expenditures. Powell’s 5-4 decision directly implements his 1971 …

Lewis F. Powell Jr. First National Bank of Boston Supreme Court bellotti-decision corporate-political-speech first-amendment political-influence citizens-united-foundation