Bigelow v. Virginia

The plaintiff, a newspaper editor, was convicted under a Virginia law making it illegal for "any person, by publication, lecture, advertisement, or by the sale or circulation of any publication, or in any other manner, [from encouraging] or [prompting] the procuring of abortion or miscarriage." The plaintiff challenged the constitutionality of this law and argued that it violated rights protected by the First Amendment. The Court rejected the Supreme Court of Virginia’s ruling that commercial speech was not protected by the First Amendment, and further held that the Virginia Law violated the plaintiff’s First Amendment rights.