Yesterday, the City of Charlestown, Ind., filed a legal motion attempting to prevent the Institute for Justice from representing the residents of the Pleasant Ridge neighborhood for free. The motion, which is exceptionally rare, asks the court to allow the city’s attorney to cross-examine the Institute’s attorneys to determine if they are truly qualified to practice property and constitutional law in Indiana. The Institute for Justice is regularly recognized as the nation’s foremost defender of property rights, having litigated cases in this area before numerous state and federal courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court. Furthermore, IJ’s attorneys have been admitted to practice in local courts hundreds of times, and have never been denied admission.

In response to the city’s motion, Institute for Justice Senior Attorney Anthony Sanders issued the following statement: