Times Film Corp. v. Chicago

365 U.S. 43 (1961)

Purchase the Printed Copy at bsmsphd.com

Nature of the Case

To access this section all you need to do is click here and register.

Facts

P owned the rights to exhibit in Chicago the film known as 'Don Juan.' It applied for a permit, as Chicago's (D) ordinance required, and tendered the license fee but refused to submit the film for examination. D refused to issue a permit. The sole ground for denial was P's refusal to submit the film for examination as required. P sued seeking injunctive relief ordering the issuance of the permit without submission of the film and restraining the city officials from interfering with the exhibition of the picture. P claimed that the municipal code was a prior restraint within the prohibition of the First and Fourteenth Amendments. The District Court dismissed the complaint on the grounds that neither a substantial federal question nor even a justiciable controversy was presented. The Court of Appeals affirmed, finding that the case presented merely an abstract question of law since neither the film nor evidence of its content was submitted. The Supreme Court granted certiorari.