LEE v. INT. SOC. FOR KRISHNA CONSCIOUSNESS

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Case Basics
Docket No. 
91-339
Petitioner 
Lee
Respondent 
Int. Soc. for Krishna Consciousness
Decided By 
Rehnquist Court (1991-1993)
Opinion 
505 U.S. 830 (1992)
Argued 
Wednesday, March 25, 1992
Decided 
Friday, June 26, 1992
Advocates
Arthur P. Berg
(Argued the cause for the petitioner)
Barry A. Fisher
(Argued the cause for the respondents)
Tags
Term:
Facts of the Case 

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey banned the distribution of flyers, brochures, pamphlets and other printed material at its airport terminals. Members of a religious group wanted to perform a ritual involving the distibution of literature at these airports. The group challenged the regulation on free expression and and free exercise grounds of the First Amendment.

Question 

Does the regulation banning the distribution of literature at airports violate the free speech and free exercise clauses of the First Amendment?

Conclusion 
Decision: 5 votes for Int. Soc. for Krishna Consciousness, 4 vote(s) against
Legal provision: Amendment 1: Speech, Press, and Assembly

In a short per curiam opinion, the court held 5 to 4 that the ban on literature distribution violated the Free Speech Clause. (A related case, also Int. Soc. for Krishna Consciousness v. Lee, 505 U.S. 672, addressed a ban on the solicitation of funds.)

Cite this Page
LEE v. INT. SOC. FOR KRISHNA CONSCIOUSNESS. The Oyez Project at IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law. 26 April 2013. <http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1991/1991_91_339>.
LEE v. INT. SOC. FOR KRISHNA CONSCIOUSNESS, The Oyez Project at IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law, http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1991/1991_91_339 (last visited April 26, 2013).
"LEE v. INT. SOC. FOR KRISHNA CONSCIOUSNESS," The Oyez Project at IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law, accessed April 26, 2013, http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1991/1991_91_339.