In April 2025, CPR and WilmerHale filed an amici curiae (“friend of the court”) brief in support of Plaintiffs-Appellees in La Union Del Pueblo Entero, et. al. v Abbott, a case before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit that challenged Texas’ voter suppression law, S.B. 1, for violating Section 208 of the Voting Rights Act. Among other points, the brief:
- Discusses the diversity of voters with disabilities who require assistance, and the broad range of assistance they need and use to vote, including Supported Decision-Making (SDM).
- Argues that S.B.1 is not only at odds with federal law, but also with Texas’ SDM legislation, which codified that people with disabilities can and should retain their autonomy and right to self-determination and can do so by relying on supporters who they know and trust to make and communicate their decisions.
Drawing upon Texas’ 2015 SDM legislation, the brief underscores that Texas was at the forefront of a national movement that recognized that people with disabilities have the right to identify and access the assistance they need to make and effectuate their own decisions, including in voting, without government interference. Texas’ SDM law embodies fundamental respect for the privacy, freedom, and autonomy of people with disabilities, and S.B. 1 should not impose more stringent requirements on voter assistance than it does on SDM supporters.
CPR and 15 other disability rights organizations signed onto the brief.
