Florida’s Ban on Chinese Homebuying to Get Appeals Court Hearing

A Florida law banning citizens of China and six other countries from buying real estate revives a 100-year-old, discredited legal precedent that unconstitutionally discriminates against Asian immigrants, civil rights groups say.

A challenge to the law, (SB 264) is set to go before a panel of the US Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit in Miami Friday, offering the biggest legal test so far for a torrent of state laws restricting land ownership by foreign individuals or entities.

SB 264 prohibits noncitizens whose “domicile” is in China from purchasing any property in the state, with exceptions for ...