Case: 23-50224 Document: 104-1 Page: 1 Date Filed: 06/02/2023
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`
`
`NO. 23-50224
`
`
`
`In The United States Court Of Appeals
`For The Fifth Circuit
`
`
`
`LEILA GREEN LITTLE; JEANNE PURYEAR; KATHY KENNEDY; REBECCA JONES;
`RICHARD DAY; CYNTHIA WARING; DIANE MOSTER,
`
`Plaintiffs-Appellees,
`
`
`v.
`
`LLANO COUNTY; RON CUNNINGHAM, IN HIS OFFICIAL CAPACITY AS LLANO
`COUNTY JUDGE; JERRY DON MOSS, IN HIS OFFICIAL CAPACITY AS LLANO COUNTY
`COMMISSIONER; PETER JONES, IN HIS OFFICIAL CAPACITY AS LLANO COUNTY
`COMMISSIONER; MIKE SANDOVAL, IN HIS OFFICIAL CAPACITY AS LLANO COUNTY
`COMMISSIONER; LINDA RASCHKE, IN HER OFFICIAL CAPACITY AS LLANO COUNTY
`COMMISSIONER; AMBER MILUM, IN HER OFFICIAL CAPACITY AS LLANO COUNTY
`LIBRARY SYSTEM DIRECTOR; BONNIE WALLACE, IN HER OFFICIAL CAPACITY AS
`LLANO COUNTY LIBRARY BOARD MEMBER; ROCHELLE WELLS, IN HER OFFICIAL
`CAPACITY AS LLANO COUNTY LIBRARY BOARD MEMBER; RHODA SCHNEIDER, IN
`HER OFFICIAL CAPACITY AS LLANO COUNTY LIBRARY BOARD MEMBER; GAY
`BASKIN, IN HER OFFICIAL CAPACITY AS LLANO COUNTY LIBRARY BOARD MEMBER,
`
`Defendants-Appellants.
`
`
`
`On Appeal from the United States District Court for the Western
`District of Texas, Case No. 1:22-cv-424-RP
`
`
`UNOPPOSED MOTION FOR LEAVE TO FILE BRIEF OF AMICI CURIAE
`THE ASSOCIATION OF AMERICAN PUBLISHERS, INC.,
`CANDLEWICK PRESS, INC., HACHETTE BOOK GROUP, INC.,
`HARPERCOLLINS PUBLISHERS LLC, MACMILLAN PUBLISHING
`GROUP, LLC, PENGUIN RANDOM HOUSE LLC, AND SIMON &
`SCHUSTER, INC.
`
`(Counsel Listed Inside Cover)
`1
`
`
`
`

`

`Case: 23-50224 Document: 104-1 Page: 2 Date Filed: 06/02/2023
`
`Marc A. Fuller
`(TX Bar No. 24032210)
`Maggie I. Burreson
`(TX Bar No. 24116150)
`JACKSON WALKER LLP
`2323 Ross Avenue, Suite 600
`Dallas, TX 75201
`Phone: (214) 953-6000
`mfuller@jw.com
`mburreson@jw.com
`
`Counsel for Amici Curiae
`
`
`
`
`2
`
`

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`Case: 23-50224 Document: 104-1 Page: 3 Date Filed: 06/02/2023
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`
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`CERTIFICATE OF INTERESTED PARTIES
`
`The undersigned counsel of record certifies that the following listed persons
`
`and entities as described in the fourth sentence of Rule 28.2.1 have an interest in
`
`the outcome of this case. These representations are made in order that the judges of
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`this Court may evaluate possible disqualification or recusal.
`
`
`Plaintiffs-Appellees
`Leila Green Little
`Jeanne Puryear
`Kathy Kennedy
`Rebecca Jones
`Richard Day
`Cynthia Waring
`Diane Moster
`
`Plaintiffs-Appellees’ Counsel
`Katherine P. Chiarello
`Ryan A. Botkin
`María Amelia Calaf
`Ian C. Crichton
`Botkin Chiarello Calaf PLLC
`Ellen V. Leonida
`Matthew Borden
`Marissa R. Benavides
`Max Bernstein
`Kory James DeClark
`BraunHagey & Borden LLP
`
`Defendants-Appellants
`Llano County
`Ron Cunningham
`Jerry Don Moss
`Peter Jones
`Mike Sandoval
`
`3
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`

`

`Case: 23-50224 Document: 104-1 Page: 4 Date Filed: 06/02/2023
`
`
`Linda Raschke
`Amber Milum
`Bonnie Wallace
`Rochelle Wells
`Rhonda Schneider
`Gay Baskin
`
`Defendants-Appellants’ Counsel
`Jonathan F. Mitchell
`Mitchell Law PLLC
`Dwain K. Rogers
`Matthew L. Rienstra
`Llano County Attorney’s Office
`
`Amici Curiae
`The Association of American Publishers, Inc.
`Candlewick Press, Inc.
`Hachette Book Group, Inc.,
`HarperCollins Publishers LLC,
`Macmillan Publishing Group, LLC,
`Penguin Random House LLC, and
`Simon & Schuster, Inc.
`
`Counsel for Amici Curiae
`Marc A. Fuller
`Maggie I. Burreson
`Jackson Walker LLP
`
`
`Undersigned counsel further certifies, pursuant to Federal Rule of Appellate
`
`Procedure 26.1(a), that:
`
` The Association of American Publishers, Inc. is not a publicly held
`
`corporation and no publicly held corporation owns 10 percent or more of its
`
`stock.
`
`4
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`

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`Case: 23-50224 Document: 104-1 Page: 5 Date Filed: 06/02/2023
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` Candlewick Press, Inc. is a privately-held wholly owned subsidiary of Walker
`
`Books Limited, UK. Walker Books Limited is a private company limited by
`
`shares incorporated in England. The immediate parent undertaking of Walker
`
`Books Limited is TGM UK Bidco Limited. The ultimate parent company is
`
`Trustbridge Global Media Holdings Co., Ltd, a company incorporated in the
`
`Cayman Islands.
`
` Hachette Book Group, Inc. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hachette Livre
`
`USA, Inc. Hachette Livre USA, Inc. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of
`
`Lagardère North America Inc. Lagardère North America Inc. is a wholly-
`
`owned subsidiary of Lagardère Media. Lagardère Media is a wholly-owned
`
`subsidiary of Lagardère SA, which is traded on the Paris stock exchange; and
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`more than 10% of Lagardère SA’s outstanding stock is owned by Vivendi SA,
`
`which is traded on the Paris stock exchange.
`
` HarperCollins Publishers LLC states that News Corporation, a publicly held
`
`company, is the ultimate parent corporation of HarperCollins. Based on public
`
`filings, no publicly held company owns 10% or more of News Corporation’s
`
`Class B voting stock and T. Rowe Price Associates Inc. owns more than 10%
`
`of News Corporation’s Class A non-voting stock.
`
`5
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`

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`Case: 23-50224 Document: 104-1 Page: 6 Date Filed: 06/02/2023
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`
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` Macmillan Publishing Group, LLC's direct parent company is Macmillan
`
`Holdings, LLC. No publicly held company owns 10% or more of the stock of
`
`either legal entity.
`
` Penguin Random House LLC is a limited liability company whose ultimate
`
`parent corporation is Bertelsmann SE & Co. KGaA, a privately-held
`
`company.
`
` Simon & Schuster, Inc. is an indirect, wholly-owned subsidiary of Paramount
`
`Global (f/k/a ViacomCBS Inc.). Paramount Global is a publicly traded
`
`company. National Amusements, Inc., a privately held company, beneficially
`
`owns the majority of the Class A voting stock of Paramount Global. In
`
`addition, Paramount Global is only aware, without further inquiry, that
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`Berkshire Hathaway Inc., a publicly traded company, beneficially owns at
`
`least 10% of Paramount Global’s total common stock, i.e., Class A and Class
`
`B on a combined basis, as reported on a Form 13F filed with the Securities
`
`and Exchange Commission on May 15, 2023.
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`/s/ Marc A. Fuller
`Marc A. Fuller
`Counsel for Amici
`
`
`6
`
`

`

`Case: 23-50224 Document: 104-1 Page: 7 Date Filed: 06/02/2023
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`
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`INTRODUCTION
`
`Amici curiae The Association of American Publishers, Inc., Candlewick
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`Press, Inc., Hachette Book Group, HarperCollins Publishers LLC, Macmillan
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`Publishing Group, LLC, Penguin Random House LLC, and Simon & Schuster, Inc.
`
`(“Amici”), through their undersigned counsel, move this Court for leave to file a
`
`Brief of Amicus Curiae in support of Appellees. See Fed. R. App. P. 29.1
`
`IDENTITY AND INTEREST OF AMICI CURIAE
`
`Amici are the national trade association for the United States publishing
`
`industry, which represents the leading book, journal, and education publishers in the
`
`country, the five largest trade book publishers, and a leading independent publisher.
`
`Amici include the publishers of most of the books at issue in this case. Publishers
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`cannot fulfill their mission of connecting authors’ books with readers if the only
`
`speech allowed is that which aligns with the views of government authorities. In a
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`democracy, the government can contest ideas, but it cannot ban them. State
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`censorship—no matter the political cause behind it—quells free thinking. Llano
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`County’s removal of books from the shelves of the public libraries, which is
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`motivated by government officials’ disagreement with the views expressed in the
`
`
`1 Pursuant to Fed. R. App. P. 29(a)(4), Amici certify that counsel for Amici authored
`this brief in whole; that no counsel for a party authored this brief in any respect; and
`that no person or entity, other than amici and their counsel, contributed monetarily
`to this brief’s preparation or submission.
`
`7
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`

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`Case: 23-50224 Document: 104-1 Page: 8 Date Filed: 06/02/2023
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`books, violates the First Amendment. Amici have a shared interest in seeing the
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`district court’s injunction affirmed by this Court.
`
`
`
`The Association of American Publishers, Inc. (“AAP”), a not-for-profit
`
`organization, represents the leading book, journal, and education publishers in the
`
`United States on matters of law and policy, advocating for outcomes that incentivize
`
`the publication of creative expression, professional content, and learning solutions.
`
`AAP’s members range from major commercial book and journal publishers to small,
`
`non-profit, university, and scholarly presses, as well as leading publishers of
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`educational materials and digital learning platforms. AAP’s members publish a
`
`substantial portion of the general, educational, and religious books produced in the
`
`United States, including critically acclaimed, award-winning literature for adults,
`
`young adults, and children. AAP represents an industry whose very existence
`
`depends on the free exercise of rights guaranteed by the First Amendment.
`
`
`
`Candlewick Press, Inc. publishes high quality, bestselling books for young
`
`readers of all ages, from birth through early adulthood. Based in Somerville, MA,
`
`and New York City, with 130 employees and nine imprints, Candlewick is part of
`
`the vibrant independent children’s publishing group called Walker Books Ltd, which
`
`is headquartered in London and has additional offices in Sydney, Australia, and
`
`Mexico City. For more than thirty years, Candlewick has published outstanding titles
`
`by award-winning authors and illustrators such as National Ambassador for Young
`
`8
`
`

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`Case: 23-50224 Document: 104-1 Page: 9 Date Filed: 06/02/2023
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`People’s Literature emerita Kate DiCamillo, current National Ambassador for
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`Young People’s Literature Meg Medina, Jon Klassen, Christina Soontornvat, and
`
`Carole Boston Weatherford, as well as classic favorites such as Guess How Much I
`
`Love You, Maisy by Lucy Cousins, and Martin Handford’s Where’s Waldo?.
`
`Hachette Book Group, Inc. is a leading book publishing company, organized
`
`under the laws of Delaware, with its principal place of business in New York City.
`
`Hachette has been publishing books since 1837, and its publishing imprints include
`
`prominent brands such as Little, Brown and Company, Little, Brown Books for
`
`Young Readers, Grand Central Publishing, Basic Books, Public Affairs, Orbit,
`
`FaithWords, and Center Street. Hachette’s books and authors have won Pulitzer
`
`Prizes, National Book Awards, Newbery Medals, Caldecott Medals, and Nobel
`
`Prizes, and its best-selling authors have been published all over the world.
`
`
`
`HarperCollins Publishers LLC is the second largest consumer book publisher
`
`in the world, with operations in 17 countries. With 200 years of history and more
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`than 120 branded imprints around the world, HarperCollins publishes approximately
`
`10,000 new books every year in 16 languages and has a print and digital catalog of
`
`more than 200,000 titles. Writing across dozens of genres, HarperCollins authors
`
`include winners of the Nobel Prize, the Pulitzer Prize, the National Book Award, the
`
`Newbery and Caldecott Medals and the Man Booker Prize.
`
`9
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`

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`Case: 23-50224 Document: 104-1 Page: 10 Date Filed: 06/02/2023
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`
`
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`Macmillan Publishing Group, LLC is a New York-based group of U.S.
`
`publishers that includes Celadon Books, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, Flatiron Books,
`
`Henry Holt & Company, Macmillan Audio, Macmillan Children’s Publishing
`
`Group, St. Martin's Publishing Group and Tor Books. The U.S. publishing group is
`
`part of Macmillan Publishers, a global trade book publishing company with
`
`prominent imprints around the world. Macmillan publishes a broad range of award-
`
`winning books for children and adults in all categories and formats.
`
`Penguin Random House LLC publishes adult and children’s fiction and
`
`nonfiction in print and digital trade book form throughout the U.S. The Penguin
`
`Random House global family of companies employ more than 10,000 people across
`
`almost 250 editorially and creatively independent imprints and publishing houses
`
`that collectively publish more than 15,000 new titles annually. Its publishing lists
`
`include more than 60 Nobel Prize laureates and hundreds of the world’s most widely
`
`read authors of fiction, historical fiction, narrative nonfiction and nonfiction.
`
`
`
`Simon & Schuster, Inc. is a global leader in general interest publishing,
`
`dedicated to providing the best in fiction and nonfiction for readers of all ages, and
`
`in all printed, digital and audio formats. Its distinguished roster of authors includes
`
`many of the world’s most popular and widely recognized writers, and winners of the
`
`most prestigious literary honors and awards. It is home to numerous well-known
`
`imprints and divisions such as Simon & Schuster, Scribner, Atria Books, Gallery
`
`10
`
`

`

`Case: 23-50224 Document: 104-1 Page: 11 Date Filed: 06/02/2023
`
`
`Books, Adams Media, Avid Reader Press, Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing
`
`and Simon & Schuster Audio and international companies in Australia, Canada,
`
`India and the United Kingdom, and proudly brings the works of its authors to readers
`
`in more than 200 countries and territories.
`
`AUTHORITY TO FILE BRIEF AMICI CURIAE
`
`FED. R. APP. P. 29(a)(3) and its counterpart, 5th CIR. R. 29(a)(3), contemplate
`
`the filing of amicus briefs where the participation of amici is “desirable and [where]
`
`the matters asserted are relevant to the disposition of the case.” The Brief of Amici
`
`Curiae is desirable in this case for two primary reasons. First, Amici can speak to the
`
`broader concerns of publishers, whose published works are affected by bans like the
`
`one that occurred in Llano County. Second, because the district court’s injunction
`
`presents numerous factual and legal issues, the parties’ ability to address all of them
`
`in detail is limited. Amici are able to focus their attention on the critical issues of (1)
`
`the books at issue, (2) the historical backdrop against which the County’s actions
`
`must be considered, and (3) the First Amendment rights at issue, about which Amici
`
`care deeply and which are fundamental to ability of Amici to connect authors with
`
`readers. Thus, the Brief is relevant and helpful to the Court’s consideration of this
`
`case.
`
`
`
`WHEREFORE, Amici respectfully request for the Court to issue an order
`
`granting leave to file a Brief of Amici Curiae in support of Appellees.
`
`11
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`

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`Case: 23-50224 Document: 104-1 Page: 12 Date Filed: 06/02/2023
`
`
`DATED: June 2, 2023
`
`Respectfully submitted,
`
`
`
`
`
`JACKSON WALKER LLP
`
`By: /s/ Marc A. Fuller
`Marc A. Fuller
`TX State Bar No. 24032210
`mfuller@jw.com
`Maggie I. Burreson
`TX State Bar No. 24116150
`mburreson@jw.com
`2323 Ross Avenue, Suite 600
`Dallas, TX 75201
`Phone: (214) 953-6000
`
`
`Counsel for Amici Curiae
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`12
`
`

`

`Case: 23-50224 Document: 104-1 Page: 13 Date Filed: 06/02/2023
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`
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`CERTIFICATE OF COMPLIANCE
`
`I HEREBY CERTIFY that this brief complies with the typeface and volume
`
`limits of FED. R. APP. P. 32(a) and Local Rule 32.1. This document complies with
`
`the word limit of FED. R. APP. P. 27(d)(2)(A) because, excluding the parts of the
`
`document exempted by FED. R. APP. P. 32(f), this document contains 1,164 words.
`
`This brief has been prepared in a proportionally spaced typeface using Microsoft
`
`Office Word 2016 in 14-point Times New Roman font for text and footnotes.
`
`
`
`
`
`/s/ Marc A. Fuller
`Marc A. Fuller
`
`
`
`
`
`13
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`

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`Case: 23-50224 Document: 104-1 Page: 14 Date Filed: 06/02/2023
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`
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`CERTIFICATE OF CONFERENCE
`
`Pursuant to 5th CIR. R. 27.4, Counsel for Amici Curiae conferred with
`
`Counsel for Appellants and counsel for Appellees concerning this Motion.
`
`Appellants and Appellees both consent to the filing of Amici’s brief.
`
`/s/ Marc A. Fuller
`Marc A. Fuller
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`14
`
`

`

`Case: 23-50224 Document: 104-1 Page: 15 Date Filed: 06/02/2023
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`
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`CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
`
`I HEREBY CERTIFY that on this 2nd day of June, 2023, a copy of the
`
`foregoing has been served upon counsel for all parties to this proceeding as identified
`
`below through the court’s electronic filing system as follows:
`
`Katherine P. Chiarello
`Ryan A. Botkin
`Maria Amelia Calaf
`Ian C. Crichton
`BOTKIN CHIARELLO
`CALAF PLLC
`1209 Nueces Street
`Austin, TX 78701
`Phone: (512) 615-2341
`Fax: (737) 289-4695
`katherine@bccaustin.com
`ryan@bccaustin.com
`mac@bccaustin.com
`ian@bccaustin.com
`
`Ellen V. Leonida
`Matthew Borden
`Marissa Benavides
`Max Bernstein
`Kory James DeClark
`BRAUNHAGEY & BORDEN LLP
`351 California Street, 10th Floor
`San Francisco, CA 94104
`Phone: (415) 599-09210
`leonida@braunhagey.com
`borden@braunhagey.com
`benavides@braunhagey.com
`bernstein@braunhagey.com
`declark@braunhagey.com
`
`Counsel for Plaintiffs-Appellees
`
`
`Jonathan F. Mitchell
`MITCHELL LAW PLLC
`111 Congress Avenue, Suite 400
`Austin, TX 78701
`Phone: (512) 686-3940
`Fax: (512) 686-3941
`jonathan@mitchell.law
`
`
`Counsel for Defendants-Appellants
`
`
`
`/s/ Marc A. Fuller
`Marc A. Fuller
`
`
`
`15
`
`

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