U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit Sides with Schaerr | Jaffe Client in First Amendment Case

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit has sided with Schaerr Jaffe’s client, the University of Florida (“UF”), in an important First Amendment case.  In 2025, UF expelled a student at its law school for threatening speech that disrupted the school’s learning environment. The student had publicly posted on social media that “My position on Jews is simple: … Jews must be abolished by any means necessary.”  The student brought an action in federal district court, which granted him a preliminary injunction requiring UF to reinstate him. 

On January 8, 2026, in a 16-page opinion, the Eleventh Circuit granted UF’s motion to stay the preliminary injunction pending appeal. The Court of Appeals ruled that “UF is likely to succeed on the merits because [the student]’s speech was likely not protected by the First Amendment.”  “UF was allowed to regulate [his] speech,” the Court ruled, because “his statements were reasonably interpreted as a call for extralegal violence that caused a serious disruption to other students’ educational experiences and the school’s ability to provide its services.” 

UF is represented by Schaerr Jaffe partner H. Christopher Bartolomucci and associate Justin A. Miller.  Senior paralegal Kristina Robinson has provided valuable support throughout the litigation.