Court Cases

Featured Cases

Court Case
Mar 31, 2026
Yellow background with brown and blue colored images of a house roof, and a mother with her small child walking up to a front door.
  • Economic Justice|
  • +3 Issues

National Alliance to End Homelessness v. Scott Turner, et al.

This case suit challenges new funding restrictions on federal housing grants. Under the new funding application rules, service providers and communities are blocked from applying for federal housing funds for new permanent supportive housing for individuals and families experiencing homelessness if they operate in jurisdictions with policies the Trump-Vance administration disfavors. This includes cities and states, like Rhode Island, that the Trump Administration deems to be “sanctuary protections” for immigrants; that provide services considered “harm reduction” services for drug users; and that have inclusive policies for transgender people.  
Court Case
Sep 22, 2025
Dark blue and orange graphic of a Rhode Island Public Transit Authority (RIPTA) bus with computer code behind it.
  • Privacy & Technology

Morelli v. RIPTA

Please click here for updates for members of the class. This class action lawsuit was filed against the Rhode Island Public Transit Authority (RIPTA) and UnitedHealthcare New England (UHC) over an August 2021 data breach at RIPTA that compromised the Social Security numbers and other personal and health care information of thousands of individuals, including many with no connection to RIPTA.
Court Case
Dec 09, 2025
Light purple and dark blue graphic with a photo of people in voting booths with USA flags on the outside, and a photo of a RI voter registration form.
  • Voting Rights|
  • +1 Issue

United States of America v. Gregg M. Amore

Alongside the National ACLU, we intervened in a lawsuit to prevent the Department of Justice from obtaining sensitive, non-public information contained in the Rhode Island state voter file on behalf of Common Cause.

All Cases

368 Court Cases
Court Case
Oct 28, 2025
Pink and red graphic with image of State House rotunda stairs.
  • First Amendment

Tuttle v. McKee

This case was filed against Governor Daniel McKee on behalf of activists who were intentionally denied access to the State House for a rally and threatened with arrest prior to the annual gubernatorial State of the State address in January.
Court Case
Oct 22, 2025
Brown and dark red graphic of a gavel and screenshot of an amicus brief.
  • Due Process|
  • +7 Issues

Parente v. Lefebvre

This "friend of the court" brief was submitted to challenge the RI Attorney General's position that state officials are immune from ever being sued in federal court under one of RI’s key anti-discrimination civil rights statutes.
Court Case
Oct 08, 2025
Purple and yellow images of a gavel and a hemp leaf.
  • Criminal Justice Reform

United States v. Worster

This "friend of the court" brief was filed to support a challenge to a federal law that completely bars unlawful users of controlled substances – including medical marijuana, which, though legal in Rhode Island, remains illegal at the federal level – from possessing firearms.
Court Case
Sep 23, 2025
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  • Due Process|
  • +1 Issue

Orellana v. Moniz, et al.

This is a class action lawsuit filed by the ACLU of MA and other partners in federal court to challenge the widespread denial of bond hearings to people detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The result of this lawsuit may affect Rhode Islanders. The denial of bond hearings is a violation of statutory and constitutional rights, upending decades of settled law and established practice in immigration proceedings. For more information, please visit the ACLU of MA's website, or contact them at [email protected].
Court Case
Aug 05, 2025
Red graphic of hands clasped together and the RI Adult Correctional Institutions building.
  • Criminal Justice Reform

Cintron v. Bibeault

The brief was filed in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit in support of Jerry Cintron, whose lawsuit alleges that while suffering from substance use disorder, he was given no treatment despite his requests for it. Instead, he was kept in disciplinary segregation for over one year.
Court Case
Jul 22, 2025
Cote v. Travis First Amendment Case
  • First Amendment

Cote v. Travis

ACLU of RI cooperating attorneys filed a federal lawsuit against the Warwick City Council for stifling the free speech rights of a local resident who was barred from speaking at a Council meeting about allegations of ethical misconduct aimed at one of its members.
Court Case
Jun 30, 2025
White, pink, and blue trans pride flag against a blue sky
  • LGBTQ+ Rights|
  • +1 Issue

Doe v. Infante-Green

Court Case
Jun 13, 2025
Green background with blue text and text boxes that says “FIRST AMENDMENT RELIGIOUS FREEDOM” and “Smith v. RI Dept. of Corrections”
  • First Amendment

Smith v. RI Department of Corrections

This lawsuit was filed on behalf of three Native Americans at the Adult Correctional Institutions (ACI), and argues that Rhode Island Department of Corrections has refused to accommodate an array of religious practices.
Court Case
Jun 09, 2025
Blue graphic with white and green graphics of a screenshot of an X (formerly twitter) account being password protected and a person typing on a smartphone.
  • Government Transparency

Mayer v. Town of Smithfield