Pacira Biosciences, Inc. v. American Society of Anesthesiologists

Pacira BioSciences, a pharmaceutical manufacturing company, sued the American Society of Anesthesiologists for trade libel over articles published in its academic journal that questioned the efficacy of one of Pacira’s products. After the district court granted the Society’s motion to dismiss, Pacira appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. 

On September 28, 2022, FIRE filed an amicus curiae brief in support of the Society, written by Professor Eugene Volokh and students in his First Amendment Clinic at UCLA School of Law. In its brief, FIRE argued that the district court correctly ruled that scientific conclusions in academic journals are protected speech. Scientific studies, like the ones published by the American Society of Anesthesiologists are part of how scientists seek to expand knowledge, and scientific claims are constantly subject to revision. FIRE also argued that scientific questions should be debated using counterspeech, not defamation actions, and that reversing the district court’s decision would chill academics and other scientists from engaging in scientific research. 

On March 24, 2023, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit agreed with FIRE and upheld dismissal of the case, based in part on the chilling effect it would have on academic research.