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Paul, Weiss Overcomes Summary Judgment in Case Seeking To Protect Voting Rights of Florida Citizens
- Client News
- March 26, 2020
Paul, Weiss and co-counsel won an important summary judgment victory on behalf of Florida citizens disenfranchised due to prior felony convictions. Co-counsel include NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, the American Civil Liberties Union Foundation of Florida, the American Civil Liberties Union, the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU, the Southern Poverty Law Center, and the Campaign Legal Center.
In Jones v. DeSantis, filed in 2019, the plaintiffs are challenging a state law that creates wealth-based hurdles to voting, undermining a constitutional amendment passed in 2018 by Florida voters to restore voting rights to people convicted of most felonies once they have completed their sentences. The complaint alleges violations of the plaintiffs’ Equal Protection, Due Process, and Twenty-Fourth Amendment rights. Following oral argument, U.S. District Judge Robert Lewis Hinkle of the Northern District of Florida denied in full a motion for summary judgment filed by the defendants, the Florida governor and secretary of state. Trial is scheduled for April 27, 2020, and will be conducted by video.
Litigation associates Pietro Signoracci and David Giller, supervised by partners Robert Atkins and Yahonnes Cleary, argued on behalf of the disenfranchised Florida citizens. The Paul, Weiss team also includes litigation associates Matthew Barnett, Amitav Chakraborty, Aaron Haier and Eliza Strong.