[News] Federal Judge Permanently Throws Out Lawfare Project’s Case Against Professor Rabab Abdulhadi and SF State

[Anti-Imperialist News]

https://palestinelegal.org/news/2018/10/30/lawfare-case-thrown-out


  Victory! Lawsuit Against SFSU and Abdulhadi Dismissed

October 30, 2018
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    Federal Judge Permanently Throws Out Lawfare Project’s Case Against
    Professor Rabab Abdulhadi and San Francisco State University

San Francisco – Yesterday, a federal judge dismissed a lawsuit against 
Professor Rabab Abdulhadi and San Francisco State University (SFSU) that 
had sought to compel the university to restrict the speech of students 
and faculty who support Palestinian freedom.

The case, /Mandel v. Board of Trustees/, was first filed in June 2017 by 
the Lawfare Project, a right-wing anti-Palestinian organization with an 
explicit plan to “inflict massive punishments” against critics of 
Israel. Having dismissed an earlier version of the lawsuit in March 
2018, Judge William Orrick III this time dismissed the case with 
prejudice, meaning the lawsuit cannot be filed again.

“The unfounded and malicious nature of this bogus suit against Dr. 
Abdulhadi is now clear for all to see.  This has disrupted nearly two 
years of her life and her work for justice in Palestine, which is the 
purpose of 'lawfare,’” explained Abdulhadi’s attorney, Mark Kleiman.

“This ruling vindicates Dr. Abdulhadi from the anti-Palestinian smear 
campaigns that she has been forced to endure,” noted Abdulhadi’s 
attorney, Ben Gharagozli.

The lawsuit is part of a years-long campaign of harassment against 
campus activists and Abdulhadi, an outspoken scholar and advocate for 
justice in and for Palestine. The Lawfare Project had three chances, and 
a team of corporate lawyers, but could not allege a successful claim.

Judge Orrick repeatedly emphasized that the Lawfare Project’s complaint 
is “devoid” of facts alleging discrimination. He wrote, “Absolutely no 
facts have been alleged to support their mere assertion of differential 
treatment.”

"The white supremacist murder of Jewish elders in a synagogue this past 
weekend is a brutal reminder that anti-Jewish bigotry is real and that 
we need to fight all forms of racism together, said Liz Jackson, 
attorney with Palestine Legal. "Judge Orrick was right to reject 
Lawfare’s attempt to equate calls for justice with discrimination. 
Instead of trying to censor campus activism for human rights, we hope 
these groups will call for an end to all forms of discrimination and 
equality for all people."

Abdulhadi is represented by Mark Kleiman, Ben Gharagozli and Gavin 
Cunningham & Hunter. SFSU is represented by Munger, Tolles & Olson LLP. 
For more background, see Palestine Legal’s case summary 
<https://palestinelegal.org/case-studies/2017/11/3/years-long-suppression-campaign-sfsu>. 


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