- Twenty Democratic AGs, led by Massachusetts AG Andrea Joy Campbell and Washington AG Nick Brown, filed an amicus curiae brief urging the U.S. Supreme Court to affirm states’ authority to issue investigatory subpoenas—often known as civil investigative demands (CIDs)—to individuals and corporations during investigations into potential state law violations.
- The brief was filed in First Choice Women’s Resource Centers, Inc. v. Platkin, a case brought by a New Jersey faith-based pregnancy center in which the center argues it can sue a state in federal court to block a state AG investigative subpoena on First Amendment grounds. The lower court rejected that claim, and First Choice appealed to the Supreme Court.
- In their amicus brief, the AGs argue that their power to issue and enforce subpoenas is fundamental to state investigative authority and critical to enforcing state laws. They warn that allowing targets of state investigations to challenge CIDs in federal court would seriously undermine state enforcement efforts, encourage preemptive litigation, and erode the confidentiality protections built into state procedures. The AGs further explain that state law already provides recipients with judicial review and avenues to challenge subpoenas.
- The AGs urge the Court to affirm the lower court’s decision and preserve states’ ability to conduct effective investigations without federal interference.