Financial Regulators See Win in High Court’s Narrow NRA Ruling

Financial and insurance regulators dodged a major threat to their authority when the US Supreme Court ruled on narrow grounds that a former New York insurance regulator violated the National Rifle Association’s free speech rights.

The high court’s May 30 ruling in National Rifle Association of America v. Vullo reopened the NRA’s First Amendment case against former New York Superintendent of Financial Services Maria Vullo over backroom pressure and guidance she issued warning insurers about the “reputational” risks of doing business with gun rights groups.

But the unanimous decision authored by Justice Sonia Sotomayor still left regulators wide latitude to ...