Case study: Content Regulation and Censorship in Russia

“It is important to engage experts because the Court’s degree of trust regarding non-legal matters lies with the experts of those fields.” – Elena Ovchinnikova Background In a victory for free speech in Russia, the Kirovsky District Court in Yekaterinburg recognized the need to protect satirical publications by lifting the ban on the circulation of […]

Case study: Kenya’s Biometric ID System

“The main question was how we would harness each other’s strengths to work together. All the parties on board individually identified what their strengths were and what resources they could provide.” — Wakesho Kililo Background In January 2020, Kenya’s High Court became one of the first Constitutional Courts in the world to halt the implementation […]

Case study: Bankia Corruption Scandal

“One of the biggest strengths of this campaign was that it was not centered around a single identity. It was built as a citizen’s device where the victory would also belong to the citizens.”— Emma Avilés Thurlow Background In one of Spain’s most high-profile cases, a group of activists successfully sent Rodrigo Rato, the ex-Minister […]

Case study: Surveillance Balloons in Chile

“We cannot just measure the success of the campaign on the final ruling. Even if we have a big defeat, the case still raised major themes that must be discussed and organizations that are involved.” —J. Carlos Lara Background Chile’s first public interest digital privacy case began with an unprecedented act of surveillance of its […]

Case study: Online Speech in India

The input from ten brains is almost always better than the input of one—provided that you collaborate properly. —Karuna Nundy Background One of India’s highest-profile digital rights cases, Singhal v. Union of India invalidated Section 66A of the Information Technology Act of 2000. Decided by the Supreme Court of India, the case struck down provisions […]

Case study: South Korea’s Internet Identity Verification System

Background In a major victory for free speech activists, the South Korean Constitutional Court struck down an infamous Internet identity verification rule in August 2012, which for five years had required all major Korea-based website operators to collect identifying information from comment posters on their sites. Case Card Name: Internet Identity Verification System Court: Korean Constitutional Court […]

Case study: New York’s Stop-and-Frisk Policies

“If organizations dedicated to litigation have a vision to change some part of world, then they need to build partnerships with others. They need to be accountable to the community and the individuals most affected by the problem they are trying to solve.” —Joo-Hyun Kang, Director of Communities United for Police Reform Background Floyd, et […]

Case Study: Tainted Drug Lab Evidence in Massachusetts

“One of the beautiful things about the partnership in this case was that it really took advantage of everyone’s skills, and pointed them in the proper direction.” –Matthew Segal Background In what is likely the single largest dismissal of wrongful convictions in the legal history of the U.S., the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts vacated […]

Case study: Google Books and Privacy

“The EFF has long believed that one of the things that makes us able to participate so meaningfully in these conversations is that we have real technologists on staff. We have trust, and we understand each other. We hire people specifically for their ability to explain technology to non-technical people.” – Cindy Cohn Background One […]