Robert Corn-Revere
Robert L. "Bob" Corn-Revere (born Robert L. Corn, October 15, 1954) is an American First Amendment lawyer. Corn-Revere is currently a partner at Davis Wright Tremaine LLP in Washington, D.C. and an adjunct scholar at the Cato Institute.  Corn-Revere was named as one of "America's Leading Lawyers for Business" in Media & Entertainment by Chambers USA, 2005–2014 and "Washington, D.C. Super Lawyers," Top in First Amendment/Media/Advertising, Law & Politics, 2008-2014 and in Communications 2011-2014, "Best Lawyers in America" in Communications, Entertainment, First Amendment, and Media Law, 2010-2014, and has been listed by Washingtonian Magazine as one of "Washington's Top Lawyers" in Communications Law and First Amendment Law.

He is the author of The Mind of the Censor and the Eye of the Beholder: The First Amendment and the Censor’s Dilemma, published by Cambridge University Press in 2021.

First Amendment advocacy

Corn-Revere has a long history of First Amendment advocacy.

From 1997 to 1999, Corn-Revere served as lead counsel alongside attorneys from People for the American Way for plaintiffs in the Mainstream Loudoun v. Loudoun County Library case in which the court declared public library internet filtering to be unconstitutional. At the same time, Corn-Revere also served a co-counsel in Bernstein v. United States in which the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals declared software source code to be constitutionally protected by the First Amendment and government regulations, specifically export restrictions on encryption software, to be unconstitutionally vague.

In 2000, Corn-Revere argued United States v. Playboy Entertainment Group on behalf of respondent Playboy Entertainment Group before the Supreme Court of the United States. In a 5–4 decision, the court struck down portions of the Communications Decency Act which required that cable television operators who offered channels "primarily dedicated to sexually-oriented programming" must scramble completely or fully block such material.

In 2003, Corn-Revere successfully petitioned New York Governor George Pataki to issue a posthumous pardon for comedian Lenny Bruce, who had been convicted for obscenity in 1964. It was the first posthumous pardon in New York history.  The pardon effort was inspired by the book The Trials of Lenny Bruce, by Ronald Collins and David Skover.

Beginning in 2004, Corn-Revere successfully defended CBS Television and Viacom in an FCC proceeding resulting from the Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show controversy, the so-called "wardrobe malfunction" during the half time show with Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake.  The FCC imposed a then-record fine of $550,000 under its broadcast indecency rules, but the penalty was reversed by the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.  After a second trip to the Third Circuit, where the fine was again struck down, the U.S. Supreme Court denied review in 2012.  Corn-Revere also represented CBS in a parallel broadcast indecency proceeding Fox Television Stations v. FCC, in which the Supreme Court invalidated indecency fines as a violation of due process.

In 2006, Corn-Revere was lead counsel in Huminski v. Corsones, in which the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit held that individual members of the public have a First Amendment right to attend court proceedings.

In 2009, Corn-Revere served as co-counsel for respondent in United States v. Stevens in which the Supreme Court of the United States ruled , a federal statute criminalizing the commercial production, sale, or possession of depictions of cruelty to animals, was an unconstitutional abridgment of the First Amendment right to freedom of speech.

Also in 2009, Corn-Revere represented Michael James Berger in a suit against the City of Seattle which challenged the constitutionality of the city's restrictions  of the public forum in the Seattle Center, a multipurpose cultural and entertainment venue. After an initial victory at the trial level, the city appealed to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals where a three-judge panel overturned the lower courts' ruling. When the appeal was heard en banc by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals they reversed their earlier ruling and upheld the trial court's finding.

In 2010, Corn-Revere served as local counsel for the successful legal defense of adult film producer John Stagliano.

In 2012, Corn-Revere was lead counsel in Barnes v. Zaccari, in which the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit reaffirmed that a student in a state university has a right to due process before he may be punished or expelled.  Following this ruling a jury in 2013 held that the university president, was personally liable, and had to pay $50,000 in damages to Hayden Barnes, the student he had wrongfully expelled.

Background

Prior to Davis Wright Tremaine, Corn-Revere served as partner at Hogan & Hartson LLP, Chief Counsel to Chairman James H. Quello of the Federal Communications Commission, and as Associate at Hogan & Hartson, Associate at Steptoe & Johnson LLP.

From 1987-2001, Corn-Revere was an adjunct professor at the Columbus School of Law, Catholic University of America.

Community involvement

Corn-Revere is currently President of the First Amendment Lawyers Association, Editorial Advisor, Free Expression in America Series, Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc., a member of the Media Institute First Amendment Advisory Council since 1997 (Chair, 1997–2003; Board of Trustees, 1997–2003),. From 2000 to 2002, Corn-Revere served on the board of the American Library Association Freedom to Read Foundation.

Corn-Revere received the Kenneth P. McLaughlin Award of Merit in 2014 from the National Press Photographers Association, and the Vickie Award in 2011 from the Victoria Woodhull Sexual Freedom Alliance.  He was named a Distinguished Alumnus of Eastern Illinois University in 2009, and in 2012 was commencement speaker at EIU, at which time he was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Laws degree.  He received the Davis Wright Tremaine Willard J. Wright Award for community service in 2011.

Education

Corn-Revere graduated with a Juris Doctor from Catholic University of America, Columbus School of Law in 1983. Prior to law school, Corn-Revere obtained an M.A. from the University of Massachusetts Amherst in 1980 and a B.A. from Eastern Illinois University in 1977.

References

External links
 

1954 births
Living people
University of Massachusetts Amherst alumni
Eastern Illinois University alumni
Columbus School of Law alumni
Cato Institute people