James Madison Center for Free Speech
The National Buildling
1 South 6th Street
Terre Haute, IN 47807-3510

PRESS RELEASE
July 30, 2026
Contact: James Bopp, Jr.
Cell Phone 812-243-0825; Phone 812-232-2434; Fax 812-235-3685; [email protected]

James Madison Center for Free Speech Files Friend of the Court Brief Supporting ACLU and Other Groups for Recognition of Associational Standing

Indiana - On Friday, in the Indiana Supreme Court, The Bopp Law Firm, PC, filed an amicus (“friend of the court”) brief on behalf of the James Madison Center for Free Speech, together with the ACLU of Indiana and 22 other groups including the AARP, NRA, Common Cause, The ARC of Indiana, and the Indiana AAUP. This multi-partisan amicus brief urges Indiana's high court to rule that in Indiana, a membership organization may sue on behalf of its members.

That legal doctrine, known as “associational standing,” flows from the basic idea of standing—that is, the judicial rule that only those who have actually suffered an injury should make use of the state's limited judicial resources. The doctrine of associational standing recognizes that membership organizations represent the voices of those very members and, accordingly, permits the organization to come to court in order to vindicate injuries suffered by those members, just as an individual may do when injured.

Although associational standing is recognized in federal court, Indiana's Supreme Court has not directly addressed the question. However, as demonstrated by the wide variety of voices that joined in the submission of the amicus brief, adopting this doctrine is critical to the operation of justice in Indiana's judicial system. The brief highlights several reasons for this.

First, associational standing prevents courts from becoming accessible only to the rich, permitting organizations to pay for expensive litigation that the average individual often cannot afford. Second, organizational standing removes additional impediments that often deter individuals from seeking recompense when wronged. Such impediments include both a simple lack of expertise in navigating the judicial system as well as a lack of expertise in the particular subject matter, both of which organizations can to provide. Finally, by permitting organizations to serve as the face of such litigation, organizational standing eliminates the prospect of unwanted publicity that litigation can bring, another factor that deters individuals from bringing suit.

Further supporting the argument that associational standing should be recognized by Indiana courts is the fact that Indiana courts have long held a view of standing much broader than federal courts. Indeed, Indiana's courts have, on numerous occasions, found that a party has standing in situations that would not be recognized by federal courts. It would thus make little sense for Indiana courts to reject this common-sense application of the doctrine of standing when federal courts have long embraced it.

James Bopp, Jr., of The Bopp Law Firm, said, “Associational standing is simply one application of the ordinary doctrine of standing, allowing injured individuals bring suit by having their interests represented by an organization of which they are a part. No state's judicial system should be accessible only by those of extraordinary means. Indiana's Supreme Court should recognize this doctrine to ensure that does not occur.”

Read the amicus brief here.