“Citizens United Fights to Keep Donor Names Secret”

NYLJ:

The conservative nonprofit that successfully fought in the U.S. Supreme Court for unlimited donations to federal campaigns wants to keep its list of donors secret.

But in oral arguments on Monday, a three-judge panel from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit had tough questions for Citizens United’s general counsel on the group’s argument that Attorney General Eric Schneiderman’s requirement that charities turn over donor lists constitutes prior restraint.

Judge Pierre Leval told Michael Boos, Citizens United’s general counsel, that the group’s fight against the attorney general’s requirement, in which charities must submit their Forms 990 as well as their Schedule B forms, which list donors, seems to indicate that the group should be entitled to “secret speech” or “secret advocacy.”

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