FSC: Court Blocks Tennessee Age-Verification Law

FSC: Court Blocks Tennessee Age-Verification Law

NASHVILLE — A Tennessee district court has blocked the state’s age verification law following the filing of a motion by Free Speech Coalition (FSC) for a preliminary injunction.

FSC's statement follows:

A Tennessee district court has blocked the state’s age-verification law, the Protect Tennessee Minors Act, from going into effect on January 1, following a motion for preliminary injunction by Free Speech Coalition. FSC sued the Tennessee Attorney General in November, calling the criminal law unconstitutional.

“The legislature has a compelling interest in protecting children from harmful content, and that is uncontested,” wrote Chief United States District Court Judge Sheryl H. Lipman in her decision granting the injunction. “But in its attempt to protect children, the State will unavoidably suppress a large amount of speech that adults have a First Amendment right to give and receive. The legislature’s goal, however admirable, does not allow it to undermine an adult’s freedom of speech. Neither the legislature nor this Court can turn a blind eye to the Constitution.”

“We applaud the Court’s decision,” says Free Speech Coalition Executive Director Alison Boden. “This is a deeply flawed law that put website operators at risk of criminal prosecution for something as trivial as a mention of the human nipple. I cannot express enough gratitude to our legal team, especially Gill Sperlein, who flew to Tennessee on the eve of the Christmas holiday to argue this case. These victories come with long hours and hard work, and can only be achieved through the financial support of our members.”

Free Speech Coalition is challenging similar laws in Louisiana, Texas, Utah, Indiana, Montana, and Florida. The Texas case, Free Speech Coalition v. Paxton, will be heard by the United States Supreme Court on January 15, 2025.

Joining Free Speech Coalition as co-plaintiffs are creator and educator MelRose Michaels; sex education platform O.school (Deep Technologies, Inc.); sexual wellness retailer Adam & Eve (PHE, Inc.); and adult fan platform JustFor.Fans (JFF Publications, LLC).

Representing Free Speech Coalition and its co-plaintiffs in this case are Jeff Sandman of Webb Daniel Friedlander LLP, D. Gill Sperlein of the Law Office of D. Gill Sperlein, and Edward M. Bearman of the Law Office of Edward M. Bearman.

Order Granting Plaintiffs’ Motion For Preliminary Injunction (Free Speech Coalition v. Skrmetti)

For more information, visit FreeSpeechCoalition.com.

Related:  

Copyright © 2025 Adnet Media. All Rights Reserved. XBIZ is a trademark of Adnet Media.
Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission is prohibited.

More News

Florida AG Sues EU-Based Adult Companies for Failing to Age-Verify Users

Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier filed a lawsuit Monday with the 12th Judicial Circuit Court of Florida against five EU-based adult companies for allegedly failing to require age verification before allowing access to adult content.

SkyPrivate Launches 'Telegram Pay-Per-Minute' Feature

SkyPrivate has launched a new pay-per-minute (PPM) private show option on Telegram.

Pineapple Support to Host 'Money and Mental Health' Online Event

Pineapple Support is hosting a free, online event to help performers balance financial wellbeing with mental health, Aug. 18-19.

Arcom Warns 5 Adult Sites Over Age Verification

French media regulator Arcom has sent enforcement notices to the operators of five adult websites that the agency says have failed to implement age verification as required under France’s Security and Regulation of the Digital Space (SREN) law.

MojoHost Debuts NVIDIA Blackwell-Powered Hosting

MojoHost has announced the launch of NVIDIA Blackwell-powered hosting featuring RTX 6000 Pro MaxQ GPUs.

FSC: Identity Theft Targeting Adult Performers

The Free Speech Coalition has put out an alert warning of an individual found to be targeting adult performers for identity theft.

Assylum.com Implements New Age Verification System

Assylum.com has introduced an age verification system across its member sites.

European Commission to Assess Pornhub, XVideos, XNXX Compliance With Digital Services Act

The European Commission plans to conduct a study to determine how well adult sites Pornhub, XVideos and XNXX are addressing illegal content and other potential harms under the EU’s Digital Services Act.

German Higher Court Upholds Ban on PornHub, YouPorn

The Higher Administrative Court of Rhineland-Palatinate on Thursday upheld a “network ban” on Aylo-owned adult sites Pornhub and YouPorn for failing to comply with German age verification regulations.

Alabama Notifying Adult Sites of New Tax Set to Take Effect Sept. 1

The Alabama Department of Revenue has begun sending notices to adult site operators about a new 10% tax on their revenues, set to be enforced starting Sept. 1.

Show More