The case was brought to the Fourth Circuit of Virginia and the Carolinas after Phyllis Randall, chair of Loudoun County Board of Supervisors, banned local resident Brian Davison from the “Chair Phyllis J Randall” Facebook page in 2016. Davison had posted on the page alleging that board members had not disclosed vested interests before casting their votes on financial transactions relating to the local school board.

Davison continued to voice criticism both offline and online and eventually his thread was deleted and he was blocked from the page by Randall, who served as administrator for the page. Although Davison was unblocked after less than 24 hours, he decided to sue Randall.

Randall argued that the Facebook page was not an official public page, so the ban did not impact Davison’s right to freedom of expression (guaranteed by the First Amendment) or due process (guaranteed by the Fifth Amendment). She asserted that she could ban anybody she wished from the page based on their opinions without triggering the First Amendment.

However, the court – after examining the Facebook page – unanimously decided that it had been created as a “tool of governance” and effectively served as a “public forum” despite being hosted on a private web site, meaning that Davison’s First Amendment rights had been violated and remained under threat.

“Aspects of the Chair’s Facebook Page bear the hallmarks of a public forum”, the court ruled, acknowledging that the Supreme Court had not yet directly addressed whether social media profiles constitute public forums.

The ruling specifically applies to a public Facebook page, rather than social media groups and profiles more widely. However, it could set a precedent for lawmakers using social media to engage with citizens, with other public officials becoming legally required to allow all citizens to engage with their public social media pages.

In a recent similar case, US President Donald Trump was sued by citizens who have been blocked from his Twitter account. A New York District Court ruled that Trump had violated the First Amendment in doing so, a decision that the White House is appealing.

The case was brought to the Fourth Circuit of Virginia and the Carolinas after Phyllis Randall, chair of Loudoun County Board of Supervisors, banned local resident Brian Davison from the “Chair Phyllis J Randall” Facebook page in 2016. Davison had posted on the page alleging that board members had not disclosed vested interests before casting their votes on financial transactions relating to the local school board.

Davison continued to voice criticism both offline and online and eventually his thread was deleted and he was blocked from the page by Randall, who served as administrator for the page. Although Davison was unblocked after less than 24 hours, he decided to sue Randall.

Randall argued that the Facebook page was not an official public page, so the ban did not impact Davison’s right to freedom of expression (guaranteed by the First Amendment) or due process (guaranteed by the Fifth Amendment). She asserted that she could ban anybody she wished from the page based on their opinions without triggering the First Amendment.

However, the court – after examining the Facebook page – unanimously decided that it had been created as a “tool of governance” and effectively served as a “public forum” despite being hosted on a private web site, meaning that Davison’s First Amendment rights had been violated and remained under threat.

“Aspects of the Chair’s Facebook Page bear the hallmarks of a public forum”, the court ruled, acknowledging that the Supreme Court had not yet directly addressed whether social media profiles constitute public forums.

The ruling specifically applies to a public Facebook page, rather than social media groups and profiles more widely. However, it could set a precedent for lawmakers using social media to engage with citizens, with other public officials becoming legally required to allow all citizens to engage with their public social media pages.

In a recent similar case, US President Donald Trump was sued by citizens who have been blocked from his Twitter account. A New York District Court ruled that Trump had violated the First Amendment in doing so, a decision that the White House is appealing.