Legal Landscape: Florida’s Forefront Issues to Unfold in 2025
1. Book Battles: Censorship vs. Freedom of Speech in Schools
One of the key legal battles kindled in Florida stems from a 2023 state education law conspiring with district level decisions, leading to the removal of certain books from school libraries. The premise behind these measures is they filter out sexually explicit material interacting with young minds. However, a number of federal lawsuits have been filed by publishers, authors, and concerned parents alleging violation of the First Amendment rights. The core of these allegations pivots around discerning between moral censorship and essential freedom of speech.
2. Campus Closures: The Question of Refunds
Return to the unprecedented perils of 2020, when COVID-19 led to the wholesale shutdown of university campuses across Florida, and the US at large. This instigated a series of lawsuits demanding refunds for the fees paid by students towards services they couldn’t avail. The Florida Supreme Court is currently considering a case against the University of Florida regarding refunds of fees levied for services like transportation, healthcare, and athletics.
3. Gun Age Laws: Second Amendment versus Safety of Youth
Florida’s 2018 law that prohibits individuals under 21 from purchasing rifles and long guns is under review by the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The National Rifle Association challenged this law, originally proposed as a security measure following the tragic mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland. A significant question that demands attention is the balance between Second Amendment rights and public safety, particularly concerning young individuals.
4. Medicaid Eligibility: Legal Perspective on the Healthcare Lapse
A class-action lawsuit gives voice to individuals dropped from Florida’s Medicaid program due to the conclusion of the federal public health emergency dictated by the COVID-19 pandemic. These affected individuals argue the state neglected in adequately notifying them before cutting them off the program.
5. Redistricting Fight: The Battle of Constituencies
Florida is bearing witness to a heated battle over redefining district boundaries, a case triggered by changes in a North Florida congressional district. Voting rights associations have escalated the matter to the state Supreme Court, challenging the constitutionality of the redistricting plan backed by Governor Ron DeSantis and sanctioned by the Legislature in 2022.
6. Social Media Platforms: Florida’s Fallout with Tech Giants
A 2021 law, aiming major social media platforms, has put Florida into a continuing standoff with tech industry groups. Notably, the law hinders platforms from banning political candidates from their sites – a measure motivated by the barring of ex-President Donald Trump following the events on Jan. 6, 2021, at the U.S. Capitol.
7. Social Media Restrictions: Protecting Youth or Infringing Rights
State lawmakers passed a potentially contentious measure in 2024 intending to stop children under 16 from creating social media accounts on certain platforms. The law permits some exceptions, allowing parents to consent for 14 and 15 year-olds, but this is seen as a violation of First Amendment rights by tech industry groups who are challenging its validity.
8. Stop Woke Act: Controversy in Education
Arguments were heard in June by the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals regarding a 2022 law limiting the teaching of race-related concepts in state universities. As Governor DeSantis flags it as the “Stop Woke Act,” it has met opposition for potentially violating First Amendment rights, with a preliminary injunction already issued in a lower court.
9. Transgender Laws: Access to Essential Treatments
Under scrutiny is the constitutionality of a Florida law barring all Medicaid coverage for hormone therapy and puberty blockers for transgender individuals seeking to alleviate gender dysphoria. The law also prevents minors from initiating such treatments and adds restrictions for adults, and is now being challenged at the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
10. Wetlands Permits: The Environmental Tussle
Environmental groups have recently emerged victorious from a dispute regarding issuing permits for projects implicating wetlands. The U.S. district judge cancelled, in favor of environmental conservation, the decision made by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in 2020 that shifted the permitting authority from federal hands to Florida. Both state and federal bodies have appealed against this ruling.
Originally Post From https://www.tampabay.com/news/florida-politics/2024/12/31/10-florida-legal-issues-watch-2025/
