Stacey McKee Knight, a partner in the Litigation and Dispute Resolution practice, is quoted in a Daily Journal article regarding a California state court ruling that canvassers have no right to use the area outside a standalone store to solicit signatures or donations from customers. Despite the argument that a distinction must be made between shopping centers and large standalone stores, Judge Joel Pressman refuted the canvassers’ claim that free speech rights under the state Constitution should give them access to space in front of retail outlets based on Pruneyard, a 30-year-old precedent holding that a shopping center constitutes a public forum where free speech rights persist, even when private entities own the land. Stacey, who represents shopping center owners and managers, real estate developers and retailers, said it was right to leave out analysis of whether the stores are part of larger shopping centers. “They may be located in a ‘Pruneyard forum,’ but that doesn’t make them take on all the attributes.” (“Activists Can’t Canvass in Front of California Target Stores, Judge Rules,” January 29, 2014)
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