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Today we filed this First Amendment lawsuit on behalf of beloved Bay Area bookstore Book Passage, and its co-owner, Bill Petrocelli. Book Passage is a hub of literary activity and free expression.  In addition to selling books, it hosts over 700 author events a year---in which authors give talks, read passages, interact with readers, and sign ...

caption id="attachment_45575" align="alignright" width="300" PLF client Bill Petrocelli at his store, Book Passage---a Bay Area favorite./caption Today we filed this First Amendment lawsuit on behalf of beloved Bay Area bookstore Book Passage, and its co-owner, Bill Petrocelli. Book Passage is a hub of literary activity and free expression.  In ...

PLF fights for booksellers' First Amendment rights On Thursday, PLF filed a major civil rights lawsuit on behalf of Book Passage, a bookstore in the Bay Area. The lawsuit challenges a California statute that requires businesses that sell signed items to demonstrate the authenticity of the signatures. This is a particular problem for bookstores tha ...

Our friends at Reason have posted this excellent video on Mark Hamill's effort to destroy small booksellers save kids from the menace that is fake Mark Hamill autographs.  Hamill's legislative efforts resulted in a law so burdensome that it threatens to shut down bookstores across California.  We're representing Bill Petrocelli and Bay Area books ...

Back in May, Pacific Legal Foundation filed a lawsuit on behalf of Book Passage and Bill Petrocelli. The lawsuit challenged a newly-enacted law that made the sale of autographed books unconscionably difficult . As we explained at the time, the statute was ostensibly adopted to protect individuals from fraud when they purchase sports or entertainmen ...

caption id="attachment_49577" align="alignright" width="300" Book Passage co-owner Bill Petrocelli, showing me his impressive array of signed books/caption Bibliophiles and liberty lovers, rejoice! Yesterday Governor Brown signed a bill that exempts books from California's draconian autograph law.  That law requires sellers of autographed good ...