09/29/2026
Another good outcome!!
After defending itself against intrusive demands for three years, American Muslims for Palestine now may rest a little easier after multiple courts dismiss litigation related to the demands from Virginia's Attorney General for protected information on its donors and volunteers. AMP kept up its fight that whole time and never waived the rights of itself, or its donors or volunteers. And now, the Attorney General's office agrees that continuing to demand this information "is no longer necessary or appropriate."
For more, see the full story below:
Courts Dismiss Litigation Against AMP After Virginia Attorney General Agrees to Vacatur
"Enforcement of the CID is no longer necessary or appropriate."
For three years, American Muslims for Palestine protected its constitutional rights to free speech and to freely associate with others, and the privacy rights and identities of its volunteers and donors when they came under threat. Now, that finally ends.
The battle stretched over six courts, a federal injunction preventing Virginia's former Attorney General from enforcing intrusive requests until after the full legal process concludes, and a United States Supreme Court ruling on nearly identical issues that unanimously acknowledged "compelled disclosure” “constitute[s] a restraint on freedom of association," and held that even a threat of enforcing a subpoena that violates First Amendment has an unlawful chilling effect on the Constitution’s protections. Yet AMP still had to keep fighting after that. So, it did. And now, without AMP waiving any objections, the lawsuits end.
Jump Start Legal Justice Center PLLC's client American Muslims for Palestine (AMP) received a Civil Investigative Demand from the former Virginia Attorney General just short of three years ago. AMP had been based in Virginia for several years by 2023, and had timely registered with its Secretary of State. AMP thought it did everything right. But it missed one form, that it needed to file with the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. Virginia officials never pointed that out before, or asked AMP to file it, or even sent notices about AMP being late. Virginia jumped straight to sending AMP a Civil Investigative Demand — then held a press conference before AMP even received notice.
The form AMP had missed asks for mostly general information about the entities, and any fundraising efforts that occur in Virginia. It ends with an oath for officers of the organization to sign that affirms no funds go to any terrorist organizations or activities. AMP officials, already targeted elsewhere, had already filed publicly available sworn statements that AMP works only within the United States and for the lawful purpose of educating the American public about Palestine’s rich history and culture, and neither accepted money from nor sent money to anyone outside the United States, let alone unlawful organizations or activities. They just hadn't said it yet on that form.
But Virginia’s former Attorney General demanded all names, address and contact information for all AMP donors and volunteers anyway, and suggested with no basis in fact that it had a right to be concerned about scary words like "terrorist activities" by AMP. AMP produced all the things Attorneys General normally request, like incorporation documents and other mundane forms. AMP filed its required Form 102 within a month, along with the oath that Virginia said justified starting the whole investigation. And, it filed documents attesting the same thing for all prior years. Virginia's former Attorney General still demanded more, and held more press conferences. AMP held its ground, standing by its objections to the unreasonable requests. And its lead attorney Christina Jump filed a Motion for Emergency Protective Order, which a federal court judge granted in October 2025 because "the Constitution applies to all of us."
Now, nearly a year after that, the parties and the relevant courts end the dispute. Because, even "subject to [AMP's] existing objections," everyone now acknowledges that demanding the protected information is not "necessary or appropriate."
“AMP has endured years of targeted and unjust attacks, yet none of them shook our conviction in the justice and moral clarity of the cause we champion: the rights of Palestinians and awareness within the United States,” observed AMP’s Executive Director Osama Abuirshaid. “Just as importantly, even in the most difficult moments we never lost faith in our judicial system or in the strength of the constitutional rights we hold as citizens. Today, we close this painful chapter with deeper conviction, stronger determination, and an unwavering commitment to our work—work that has proven to be both impactful and indispensable.”
“I’ve had the privilege to lead AMP’s legal battles against these unjustified demands for the past three years,” remarked AMP’s lead counsel Christina A. Jump of Jump Start Legal Justice Center PLLC. “And now we celebrate this correct and just resolution. AMP never sacrificed its values, or waived its own rights or those of its volunteers and donors. What ran the range from political events to a disregard of the legal process—by someone elected specifically to uphold it—now ends as it should: with recognition there’s nothing left to demand, and no legal right to intrude further.”
Jump Start Legal Justice Center commends the work of its co-counsel Samira Elhosary, who also joined in fighting on behalf of AMP since the inception of this battle. “AMP simply used its constitutional right to engage in free speech” said Ms. Elhosary, Senior Staff Attorney in the Civil Litigation Department of the Muslim Legal Fund of America. “Unproven allegations do not justify any state official violating that right." Additional counsel provided valuable assistance, including Brad Marrs of Marrs & Henry at the state court level, and Jim Bacon and the team at Mahdavi, Bacon, Halfhill & Young in Virginia’s federal court litigation.
