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Robins v. Pruneyard Shopping Center - Free Speech Access To Shoppi
Robins v. Pruneyard Shopping Center - Free Speech Access To Shoppi
July 1980
Recommended Citation
James Marcus Boman, Robins v. Pruneyard Shopping Center: Free Speech Access to Shopping Centers under the California Constitution, 68
Calif. L. Rev. 641 (1980).
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Robins v. Pruneyard Shopping
Center: Free Speech Access to
Shopping Centers Under the
California Constitution
In Robins v. PruneyardShopping Center,' the California Supreme
Court held that the provisions of the state constitution guaranteeing
freedom of speech and the right to petition z protect the public's right to
use privately owned shopping centers as forums for speech-related ac-
tivities, subject to reasonable regulation. By contrast, the United States
Supreme Court has held that the parallel free speech clause in the first
amendment to the United States Constitution does not bar a shopping
center owner from denying others free speech access to his property.3
In reaching a contrary result under the California Constitution's speech
and petition clauses, the California Supreme Court reasserted its right
to give a broader interpretation to provisions of California's Declara-
tion of Rights4 than is given to parallel provisions of the federal Bill of
Rights.5
The court rejected its prior determination 6 that under Lloyd Corp.
v. Tanner,7 the applicable federal precedent, shopping center owners
possess a federally protected exclusionary property right immune from
regulation. Lloyd, the court argued, did not determine the scope of
federal property rights; it merely held that the first amendment does
not prevent shopping center owners from imposing restraints on speech
1. 23 Cal. 3d 899, 592 P.2d 341, 153 Cal. Rptr. 854 (1979) (Newman, J.) (4-3 decision), aj'd,
48 U.S.L.W. 4650 (June 9, 1980) (Rehnquist, J.) (unanimous decision).
When this Note was written, Pruneyard's appeal was pending before the United States
Supreme Court. 48 U.S.L.W. 3322 (Nov. 13, 1979) (jurisdiction postponed to hearing on the mer-
its). Since the Note was in the final stages of publication when the Court's decision was an-
nounced, it was not possible to revise it. The Note addresses questions of both federal and state
law. Its analysis of the federal questions, which alone were before the United States Supreme
Court, complements that adopted in Justice Rehnquist's majority opinion.
2. CAL. CONsT. art. I, §§ 2, 3 (1974) (formerly §§ 9, 10).
3. Hudgens v. NLRB, 424 U.S. 507 (1976); Lloyd Corp. v. Tanner, 407 U.S. 551 (1972).
4. CAL. CONsT. art. I.
5. See note 52 and accompanying text infra.
6. Diamond v. Bland, 11 Cal. 3d 331, 335 n.4, 521 P.2d 460, 463 n.4, 113 Cal. Rptr. 468, 471
n.4, cert. denied, 419 U.S. 885 (1974) [hereinafter cited as Diamondfl]. This decision reversed the
court's prior ruling in Diamond v. Bland, 3 Cal. 3d 653, 477 P.2d 733, 91 Cal. Rptr. 501 (1970),
cert. denied sub nom. Homart Dev. Co. v. Diamond, 402 U.S. 988 (1971) [hereinafter cited as
Diamond1].
7. 407 U.S. 551 (1972).
CALIFORNIA LAW REVIEW [Vol. 68:641
I
THE ROBINS DECISION
each case the burden imposed is slight, since the owner has, in a general sense, opened his prop-
erty to those parties whose limited expressive activity he is asked to tolerate.
19. 23 Cal. 3d at 907-08, 592 P.2d at 345-46, 153 Cal. Rptr. at 858-59. These bases provide
an independent foundation for the Robins decision in case Lloyd was intended to rule that requir-
ing Lloyd Corporation to permit handbilling at its shopping center would violate its property
rights under the fifth and fourteenth amendments.
20. U.S. CONST. amend. I; CAL. CONST. art. I, § 3. This right is especially important in
California, since its citizens may initiate change through initiative, referendum, and recall. CAL.
CONsT. art. II, §§ 8, 9, 13. In a footnote, Justice Newman pointed out that, "because of the large
number of signatures required to succeed in an initiative, referendum, or recall drive, guarantee-
ing access to voters is essential to make meaningful the right to mount such a drive." 23 Cal. 3d at
908, 592 P.2d at 346, 153 Cal. Rptr. at 859.
21. "Every person may freely speak, write and publish his or her sentiments on all subjects,
being responsible for the abuse of this right. A law may not restrain or abridge liberty of speech
or press." CAL. CONsT. art. I, § 2. "The people have the right to instruct their representatives,
petition government for redress of grievances, and assemble freely to consult for the common
good." CAL. CONsT. art. I, § 3.
22. Justice Richardson's dissenting opinion did not reach the issue of the independent scope
of the California Constitution's speech and petition provisions. He argued that Lloyd and Central
HardwareCo. v. NLRB, 407 U.S. 539, 547 (1972), decided the same day as Lloyd, established that
the fifth and fourteenth amendments give shopping center owners a federally protected property
right to exclude general free speech activities unrelated to the shopping center's purposes and
functions when adequate alternative avenues of communication exist. 23 Cal. 3d at 914-15, 592
P.2d at 350, 153 Cal. Rptr. at 863. For a discussion of this interpretation of Lloyd, see text accom-
panying notes 52-59 infra. The trial court's finding of adequate alternative forums was, in Rich-
ardson's view, entirely proper. He therefore concluded that the supremacy clause, U.S. CONST.
art. VI, § 2, prevents the California Supreme Court from employing its state constitution to defeat
Pruneyard's federally protected exclusionary property rights.
23. The principal factors were the following: (a) the framers chose not to adopt the words of
the federal Bill of Rights; (b) California courts have traditionally interpreted article I, § 2, as a
"protective provision more definitive and inclusive than the First Amendment." 23 Cal. 3d at 908,
592 P.2d at 346, 153 Cal. Rptr. at 859"(quoting Wilson v. Superior court, 13 Cal. 3d 652, 658, 532
P.2d 116, 120, 119 Cal. Rptr. 468, 472 (1975) (applying the California Constitution's free speech
clause to overturn a court order suppressing publication of a false and misleading political state-
1980] CONSTITUTIONAL LAW
language 24
of these sections "broadly proclaims speech and petition
rights."
Justice Newman's majority opinion does not, however, indicate
whether state action plays a role in defining the scope of the speech and
petition guarantees contained in sections 2 and 3 of article I. Since
these sections contain no express state action limitation, the court need
not have construed them to imply one. The majority's reference to sec-
tions 2 and 3 as broadly proclaiming speech and petition rights, cou-
pled with the conspicuous absence of any discussion of state action,
might indicate that it did not. On the other hand, the majority's heavy
reliance on pre-Lloyd precedents finding "public function" state action
in the operation of the sidewalks, parking areas and malls of shopping
centers 5 suggests that the court construed sections 2 and 3 to imply a
state action requirement. If it did, the standard for finding the requisite
state involvement under these sections must be less restrictive than the
federal standard, since the United States Supreme Court has ruled that
there is insufficient state involvement in the operation of privately
owned shopping centers to invoke first amendment protections.26 The
remaining possibility is that the court was simply not yet prepared to
choose between these alternative constructions.2 7
II
LEGAL BACKGROUND
A. Federal Cases
The first amendment states that "Congress shall make no law...
abridging the freedom of speech,. . . or the right of the people. . . to
petition the Government for redress of grievances."28 The United
States Supreme Court has held that the "due process" clause of the
fourteenth amendment extends this prohibition to speech and petition-
ing restraints imposed by state governments. 29 The fourteenth amend-
ment does not, however, prohibit restraints imposed by private parties
ment)); (c) a chain of pre-Lloyd California precedents, including Diamond I, held that the first
amendment to the United States Constitution subordinates property rights to free speech rights
where the owner "has fully opened his property to the public." 23 Cal. 3d at 910, 592 P.2d at 347,
153 Cal. Rptr. at 860 (quoting Diamond!, 3 Cal. 3d at 662, 477 P.2d at 739, 91 Cal. Rptr. at 507);
and (d) since shopping centers are even more prevalent today than they were at the time of these
pre-Lloyd decisions, the policies favoring access are more forceful now than ever. 23 Cal. 3d at
910 & n.5, 592 P.2d at 347 & n.5, 153 Cal. Rptr. at 860 &n.5 (citing Diamond!!, 11 Cal. 3d at 342,
521 P.2d at 468, 113 Cal. Rptr. at 476 (Mosk, J., dissenting)).
24. 23 Cal. 3d at 910, 592 P.2d at 347, 153 Cal. Rptr. at 860.
25. See, e.g., Diamond!, 3 Cal. 3d at 666 n.4, 477 P.2d at 741 n.4, 91 Cal. Rptr. at 509 n.4.
26. Hudgens v. NLRB, 424 U.S. at 521; Lloyd Corp. v. Tanner, 407 U.S. at 570.
27. See text accompanying notes 84-91 infra.
28. U.S. CONST. amend. I.
29. See, eg., Fiske v. Kansas, 274 U.S. 380 (1927).
CALIFORNIA LAWREVIEW [Vol. 68:641
B. Caifornia Cases
The California Supreme Court had previously faced the question
of the public's right to use shopping centers as free speech forums in
two Diamond v. Bland decisions. 48 In DiamondI the court granted in-
junctive relief to members of a political organization seeking access to a
shopping center for the purpose of distributing leaflets and soliciting
petition signatures for an anti-pollution initiative. 49 Relying on Marsh
and Logan Valley, Justice Mosk, writing for the majority, argued that
since shopping centers had become the modem suburban counterpart
of the town center, the first amendment ensured their availability as
public forums.'
After Lloyd, the California Supreme Court considered it necessary
to review its DiamondIruling. Upon reappraisal, the court in Diamond
II held that requiring a shopping center owner to tolerate petitioning
would violate his federally guaranteed property rights as defined by
Lloyd. Supremacy principles, the court concluded, required the rever-
sal of Diamond .51
III
ANALYSIS
The Robins majority analyzed the free speech access issue in two
steps. First, it determined that requiring Pruneyard Shopping Center
to allow free speech activity would not violate the owner's federal prop-
erty rights. The supremacy clause therefore would not preclude the
court from applying the California Constitution's speech and petition
provisions to protect speech at shopping centers. Second, the court de-
termined that these provisions should be construed to afford this pro-
tection. Although both conclusions are correct, the reasoning advanced
by the court requires additional support.
52. See, e.g., People v. Pettingill, 21 Cal. 3d 231, 247-48, 578 P.2d 108, 118, 145 Cal. Rptr.
861, 871 (1978); Diamond!I, 11 Cal. 3d at 338, 521 P.2d at 465, 113 Cal. Rptr. at 473 (Mosk, J.,
dissenting); Countryman, Why a State Bill of Rights?, 45 WASH. L. REv. 453 (1970); Falk, The
Supreme Court of Calffornia, 1971-1972-Foreword: The State Constitution: .A More Than "Ade-
quate" Nonfederal Ground, 61 CALIF. L. REV. 273, 283 (1973); Note, People v. Pettingill: The
Independent State Ground Debate in Calfornia, 67 CALIF. L. REV. 768 (1979); Note, The New
Federalism: TowardaPrincuiledInterpretationof the State Constitution, 29 STAN. L. REV. 297, 298
(1977) [hereinafter cited as New Federalism]. The California Supreme Court has pioneered such
independent interpretations. See Project Report, supra note 13, at 326; New Federalism,supra at
301 n.21. CAL. CoNsT. art. I, § 24, which states that "[r]ights guaranteed by this Constitution are
not dependent on those guaranteed by the United States Constitution," has been interpreted as
authorizing this practice. See People v. Pettingill, 21 Cal. 3d at 247-48, 578 P.2d at 118, 145 Cal.
Rptr. at 871.
53. The claim that the first amendment protects the shopping center owner's right to refuse
to allow others to use his property to convey social, political, or religious messages he finds unac-
ceptable was first raised by Pruneyard in Respondent's Brief in Response to Amicus Curiae Briefs
at 35-42, Robins v. Pruneyard Shopping Center, 23 Cal. 3d 899, 592 P.2d 341, 153 Cal. Rptr. 854
(1979). The California Supreme Court did not, however, address this issue in its decision.
Pruneyard's first amendment claim is one of the bases for its appeal to the United States Supreme
Court. 48 U.S.L.W. 3319 (Nov. 13, 1979),juris.postponed to hearingon merits, 48 U.S.L.W. 3322
(Nov. 13, 1979).
CA4LIFORNI.4 LAW REVIEW [Vol. 68:641
54. 23 Cal. 3d at 904, 592 P.2d at 343, 153 Cal. Rptr. at 856.
55. These decisions have upheld rulings of the NLRB that interpreted the National Labor
Relations Act of 1935, § 8(1), 29 U.S.C. § 158(a)(1) (1973), as requiring employers to permit union
organizers or employees to engage in speech-related activities on the worksite. Eastex, Inc. v.
NLRB, 437 U.S. 556 (1978); Hudgens v. NLRB, 424 U.S. 507 (1976), remanded, Hudgens, 230
N.L.R.B. No. 73 (1977) (ruling that the employer must allow the picketing activity). Cf.Food
Employees Local 590 v. Logan Valley, Inc., 391 U.S. 308, 340 (1968) (White, J., dissenting) ("If it
were shown that Congress has thought it necessary to permit picketing on private property ... to
implement and enforce the First Amendment, we would have quite a different case.").
In CentralHardwareCo. v. NLRB, Justice Powell, again writing for the majority, made simi-
lar references to fifth and fourteenth amendment property rights while rejecting afirst amendment
claim by labor organizers to solicit union membership in the parking lot of a retail store: "[To
grant access] would constitute an unwarranted infringement of long-settled rights of private prop-
erty protected by the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments." 407 U.S. 539, 547 (1972). But the
Court apparently did not intend by that language to preclude the possibility that access could be
granted on statutory grounds, since it remanded the case to the Court of Appeals with instructions
to determine whether access should be granted under the National Labor Relations Act. d. at
548.
56. 23 Cal. 3d at 904, 592 P.2d at 343, 153 Cal. Rptr. at 856.
57. The first reference appears at the beginning of the opinion where Justice Powell stated
that certiorari was granted "to consider petitioner's contention that the decision below violates the
rights of private property protected by the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments." 407 U.S. at 552-
53. This reference may be read as reflecting the Court's initial concern about the "comprehen-
sive" nature of the district court's injunction: "Irrespective of how controversial, offensive, dis.
tracting or extensive the distribution, Lloyd has been ordered to allow all non-commercial
handbilling which anyone desires to undertake within its private premises." Id. at 564 n.l 1 (em-
phasis added). Even if first amendment protections had applied, such a broad injunction might
nevertheless have impermissibly interfered with Lloyd's business interests. However, the proper
course in that event would have been to remand the case with instructions to modify the injunc-
tion to permit Lloyd to adopt reasonable time, place, and manner rules to ensure that the handbil-
ling would not be disruptive. Since the first amendment was ruled inapplicable, the Court did not
need to consider whether the injunction's overbreadth could be cured.
The other references to property rights were made in passages where Justice Powell spoke of
1980] CONSTITUTIONAL LAW
ignores his attempt to provide a basis for the decision that would fairly
distinguish the rule of Logan Valley.58
The Lloyd Court did not need to reach the taking or due process
issues to provide an independent basis for its decision consistent with
Logan Valley's finding of state action in the operation of shopping cen-
ters. Assuming the existence of state action in Lloyd, the issue
presented was whether the state's restraint on speech was permissible.
The Court could have found that it was without ruling that the fifth
and fourteenth amendments require the state to preserve the shopping
center owner's exclusionary property rights. The Court's references to
property rights should instead be read as establishing only that the first
amendment does not prohibit state action which protects private prop-
erty interests by nondiscriminatorily denying free speech access to
shopping centers.5 9 Lloyd therefore poses no barrier to legislation im-
posing a limited free speech easement on shopping centers. It remains
to be determined, however, whether there is substantial precedent apart
from Lloyd for holding that such a law would violate the shopping
center owner's federally protected rights.
2. Due Process
In order to comply with the "due process" clauses of the fifth and
fourteenth amendments, an exercise of the state's police power must be
the "accommodations" which may be made between property interests and first amendment inter-
ests. Id. at 567-68, 570.
58. Id. at 560-67. The discussion of Lloyd and Logan Valley in Hudgens v. NLRB, 424 U.S.
at 517-21, suggests that the result in Lloydwould have been the same even if state action had been
found. The Court constructed two arguments to show that "the rationale of Logan Valley did not
survive the Court's decision in Lloyd": (1) Lloyd held that the operation of a privately owned
shopping center does not constitute state action; (2) even if it did constitute state action, the first
amendment will not allow courts to, in effect, regulate speech on the basis of its content. Id. at
518-21 (citing Erznoznik v. City of Jacksonville, 422 U.S. 205 (1975), and Police Dep't v. Mosley,
408 U.S. 92 (1972)). Since Lloyd did not extend first amendment protection to advocates whose
message was unrelated to the shopping center's function, the Court reasoned that it could not,
without overruling Lloyd, extend first amendment protection to those, such as union organizers,
whose message is directly related to the business function of the center. 424 U.S. at 520-21. For a
critique of this argument, see L. TRIBE, AMERICAN CONSTITUTIONAL LAW 695 n.15 (1978). That
Hudgens treated Lloyd's result as viable even if state action had been present supports the view
that the references in Lloyd to property rights provide an independent basis for the decision.
59. This interpretation is corroborated by the emphasis the Lloyd majority gave to the find-
ing that Lloyd Center nondiscriminatorily excluded all handbilling. 407 U.S. at 555-56, 567-68.
Since the hypothetically "state" action was employed in a content-neutral fashion and did not
significantly inhibit speech, id. at 567, it would be appropriate to apply a relaxed standard of first
amendment scrutiny. See, e.g., Greer v. Spock, 424 U.S. 828, 839 (1976) (upholding the policy of
a military base to exclude political candidates, partly on the basis that the military personnel
stationed there could attend political rallies off base). Under this test, the restraint on speech is
permissible if it promotes a legitimate end. Justice Powell's references to the importance which
the fifth and fourteenth amendments place on property rights should be interpreted as demon-
strating that a legitimate end is served by allowing Lloyd Corporation to exclude all handbilling.
CALIFORVIA LAW REVIEW [Vol. 68:641
60. Village of Euclid v. Ambler Realty Co., 272 U.S. 365, 395 (1926).
61. Ferguson v. Skrupa, 372 U.S. 726, 731 (1963). Accord, Whalen v. Roe, 429 U.S. 589,
597-98 (1977); Williamson v. Lee Optical Co., 348 U.S. 483, 487-88 (1955); Munn v. Illinois, 94
U.S. 113, 123, 134 (1876).
62. "The concept of the public welfare is broad and inclusive .... The values it represents
are spiritual as well as physical, aesthetic as well as monetary." Berman v. Parker, 348 U.S. 26, 33
(1954).
63. Ferguson v. Skrupa, 372 U.S. at 730.
64. Whalen v. Roe, 429 U.S. at 597. Accord, New State Ice Co. v. Liebman, 285 U.S. 262,
311 (1932) (Brandeis, J., dissenting) ("It is one of the happy incidents of the federal system that a
single courageous state may, if its citizens choose, serve as a laboratory, and try novel social and
economic experiments without risk to the rest of the country."). Unsuccessful experiments can be
terminated through the same legislative process that initiated them. Whalen v. Roe, 429 U.S. at
598. By contrast, constitutional adjudication by the United States Supreme Court involves "vital
finalities." Dennis v. United States, 341 U.S. 494, 552 (1951) (Frankfurter, J., concurring).
65. There are, however, two grounds on which one might argue that the United States
Supreme Court should give applications of vague state constitutional provisions a more rigorous
"due process" review than it would give a statute. First, state constitutions are harder to modify or
repeal than are statutes. See, e.g., CAL. CONsT. art. XVIII. Second, vague state constitutional
provisions are susceptible to use as pretexts for "law-making" by an imprudent state supreme
court.
Neither of these rationales is persuasive. First, it is far more difficult to amend the United
States Constitution in order to overturn a "due process" decision of the United States Supreme
Court than it is to amend a state constitution in order to overturn a state supreme court decision.
*Second, the United States Constitution gives Congress the power to determine the appellate juris-
diction of the United States Supreme Court. U.S. CoNsT. art III, § 1. From the Judiciary Act of
1789 to the present Judicial Code, 28 U.S.C. § 1257 (1966) (amended 1970), the Court's power to
review state court decisions has been congressionally limited to the federal questions decided by
the state courts. The Court is not authorized to review the soundness of a state court's interpreta-
tion of state law. Therefore, it should not manipulate its standard of "due process" review to
expand its own jurisdictional authority.
66. See Dyer v. Sims, 341 U.S. 22 (1951); American Fed. of Lab. v. Watson, 327 U.S. 582,
596 (1946).
67. The California electorate enacted these provisions in 1974. See note 87 infra.
1980] CONSTITUTIONAL LAW
3. Taking
A regulation which admittedly promotes the public welfare may
nevertheless be invalidated under the "taking" clause of the fifth
amendment. If the Court finds that enforcement of a regulation would
diminish the complaining party's property rights in such a way as to
constitute a "taking," the state must provide "just compensation"
before it can enforce the regulation against him. In order to prove a
taking, the complaining property owner must show that enforcement of
the regulation would have two consequences: first, it would impose a
severe burden on his property;6 9 and second, the effect of this imposi-
tion would be to unjustly and unfairly require him to confer a benefit
upon the public.7" If, on the contrary, the Court finds that the burden
would be slight or that it should be characterized as preventing a harm,
the regulation will be upheld.7 '
Sections 2 and 3 of article I, as construed and applied in Robins,
constitute a permissible regulation under .both prongs of the test. First,
enforcement will not impose a severe burden on the shopping center
owner. Since he has already chosen to open his premises to the general
public, requiring him to endure the limited speech activity of others
wil not violate his right to privacy or "create that psychic harm which
is thought to justify the more generous standard of compensation in
cases of physical invasion."7 2 Neither is he likely to suffer substantial
economic loss as a result of the Robins decision. Some loss of business
68. See, e.g., First Nat'l Bank v. Bellotti, 435 U.S. 765, 776-77 (1978); Buckley v. Valeo, 424
U.S. I, 49 & n.55 (1976); New York Times Co. v. Sullivan, 376 U.S. 254, 270 (1964).
69. See Pennsylvania Coal Co. v. Mahon, 260 U.S. 393, 413, 415 (1922). See generally
Michelman, Property, Utility, and Fairness: Comments on the Ethical Foundations of "JustCom-
pensation" Law, 80 HARV. L. REv. 1165, 1191-93, 1229-34 (1967); Sax, Takings and the Police
Power, 74 Yale L.J. 36, 50-60 (1964).
70. The Court will ordinarily uphold a regulation if the burden it imposes on private prop-
erty can be characterized as one "borne to secure 'the advantage of living and doing business in a
civilized community.'" Andrus v. Allard, 100 S.Ct. 318, 328 (1979) (quoting Pennsylvania Coal
Co. v. Mahon, 260 U.S. at 422 (Brandeis, J., dissenting)) (upholding the Eagle Protection Act, 16
U.S.C. § 668(a) (1974), which prohibits trade in eagle parts). Accord, Penn Cent. Transp. Co. v.
City of New York, 438 U.S. 104, 124 (1978); Goldblatt v. Town of Hempstead, 369 U.S. 590, 593
(1962).
71. See, e.g., Goldblatt v. Town of Hempstead, 369 U.S. at 593; Mugler v. Kansas, 123 U.S.
623 (1887). See generally Dunham, Griggs v. Allegheny County in Perspective: Thirty Years of
Supreme CourtExpropriationLaw, 1962 Sup. CT. REv. 63, 75; Michelman, supra note 69, at 1196-
201, 1235-45; Sax, supra note 69, at 48-50.
72. Property Rights, supra note 13, at 1604. See also Food Employees Local 590 v. Logan
CALIFORNIA LAW REVIEW [Vol. 68:641
vehicle license plates. Finally, in Abood, the Court ruled that while a state may require nonunion
employees to pay a service fee to a public employee's union, the first amendment protects the
nonmembers' right to demand the return of that portion of the fee used to subsidize political
activity. The first amendment was violated because the state had selected a private association
representing only "one segment of the population," 431 U.S. at 259 n.13 (Powell, J., concurring),
and forced unwilling individuals to contribute to the dissemination of ideological messages se-
lected by that association.
78. See, e.g., First Nat'l Bank v. Bellotti, 435 U.S. at 786 (overturning statute prohibiting use
of corporate funds for purpose of expressing views on tax referenda or issues not materially affect-
ing the property, business, or assets of the corporation). See generaly L. TRiuE, supra note 58 at
580-89.
79. In Red Lion Broadcasting Co. v. FCC, 395 U.S. 367 (1969), the Court, noting that the
public airwaves are a limited resource requiring regulation, unanimously upheld the validity of
the FCC's "fairness doctrine" requiring broadcasters to afford an opportunity to reply to political
editorials and personal attacks they broadcast. Similarly, the Court in Abood, although holding
that nonunion employees could recover "dues" spent on politicalactivities, implicitly found that
the state's interest in promoting peaceful labor relations outweighed the nonmembers' first amend-
ment interest in not being compelled to contribute to the union's collective bargainingactivities.
431 U.S, at 243-44 (Relnquist, J., dissenting).
80. See L. TIUBa, supra note 58, at 682-85.
81. See, e.g., United States v. O'Brien, 391 U.S. 367 (1968) (upholding conviction for public
burning of draft card in violation of statute prohibiting destruction of draft cards).
82. See, e.g., Schneider v. State, 308 U.S. 147, 162, 164 (1939) (overturning antihandbilling
ordinance as applied to door-to-door distribution and to distribution on public streets because
there are less onerous methods of preventing littering, frauds, and trespasses).
83. In contrast to Abood, the shopping center owner must allow his property to be used to
disseminate views of a broadly representative group-indeed, the "group" consists of all the mem-
bers of the general public seeking access. Cf.Buckley v. Valeo, 424 U.S. at 85-108 (upholding
constitutionality of public financing of presidential election campaigns); Day-Brite Lighting, Inc.
v. Missouri, 342 U.S. 421 (1952) (upholding law requiring employers to give employees paid time
off in order to vote). In contrast to Tornillo, the spectre of governmental control is not present.
Contrary to the suggestion of one commentator, Schauer, Hudgens v. NLRB and the Problem of
State Action in FirstAmendmentAdjudication,61 MINN. L. REv.433, 450 (1977), a public right of
access to shopping centers would not impose upon the owners an obligation to ensure that a "fair
CALIFORAiA LAW REVIEW [Vol. 68:641
B. State ConstitutionalProtection
The United States Supreme Court has ruled that the public func-
tion doctrine of state action does not apply to the operation of shopping
sampling of community opinion" is offered on their premises. The opposite is true: the owners
would not be permitted to exercise editorial control over the ideological content of the expressive
activities conducted at the shopping center. The reasonable "time, place, and manner" rules
which Robins allows the shopping center owners to adopt, 23 Cal. 3d at 910-11, 592 P.2d at 347-
48, 153 Cal. Rptr. at 860-61, would have to be administered in an evenhanded manner. See
Buckley v. Valeo, 424 U.S. at 18;Police Dep't v. Mosley, 408 U.S. 92 (1972) (state cannot open a
public forum to those protesting labor practices and deny access to everyone else).
Nevertheless, the shopping center owner can argue that Wooley should be extended to
prohibit any government compulsion that would result in forcing him to tolerate the use of his
property to convey messages he finds profoundly objectionable. Arguably, such compulsion
would violate his rights of privacy and personhood, see generally L. TRIBE, supra note 58, at 886-
990, and invade "the sphere of intellect and spirit which it is the purpose of the First Amendment
to our Constitution to reserve from all official control." Wooley v. Maynard, 430 U.S. at 715
(citing West Virginia State Bd. of Educ. v. Barnette, 319 U.S. 624, 642 (1943)). This argument
would have merit in the context of a homeowner's right to exclude unwanted views. See L. TRIBE,
supranote 58, at 694, 984-85. But since the shopping center owner has opened his property to the
general public for business purposes, he should be estopped from arguing that to require him to
allow his property to be used as a public forum would impermissibly encroach upon his rights of
privacy and personhood. Compare Marsh v. Alabama, 326 U.S. 501 (1946) (religious worker has
first amendment right to distribute literature on the streets of a privately owned town) and Peter-
sen v. Talisman Sugar Corp., 478 F.2d 73 (5th Cir. 1973) (first amendment gives labor organizers a
right of access to privately owned agricultural work camp), both of which were based on the first
amendment, with Eastex, Inc. v. NLRB, 437 U.S. at 573 (since employees are already rightfully on
the employer's property, his management interests rather than his property rights were primarily
implicated in a NLRB ruling that the employees could distribute a union newsletter containing
political propaganda on the worksite) and NLRB v. Babcock & Wilcox Co., 351 U.S. 105 (1956)
(upholding NLRB ruling requiring employer to permit union organizers to enter his property to
solicit for union membership since no other effective means of communication were available),
which were based on the National Labor Relations Act.
1980] CONSTITUTIONAL LAW
centers.8 4 Since the requisite state action is absent, the shopping center
owner's right to exclude those seeking to engage in speech-related ac-
tivities is not restricted by the first and fourteenth amendments. Rob-
ins, however, held that the California Constitution's speech and
petition provisions protect speech-related activities at shopping centers.
It follows that either state action is not required to invoke the protec-
tion of these provisions, or a less stringent standard of state action is
applied.
The Robins court's failure to raise the state action issue, coupled
with its reference to the breadth of the free speech rights proclaimed in
sections 2 and 3 of article I,5 might indicate that the court did not
construe these sections to contain a state action requirement.8 6 The
abandonment of a state action requirement for provisions of Califor-
nia's Declaration of Rights that parallel provisions in the federal Bill of
Rights would be a significant innovation. The court has been unwilling
to take such an approach in construing the California Constitution's
"due process" and "equal protection" guarantees.8 7 It has, however,
84. Hudgens v. NLRB, 424 U.S. at 521; Lloyd Corp. v. Tanner, 407 U.S. at 570.
85. 23 Cal. 3d at 910, 592 P.2d at 347, 153 Cal. Rptr. at 860.
86. Both sections are cast in affirmative language. Section 2 includes, but is not expressly
limited to, a prohibition on governmental restraints on speech: "Every person may freely speak,
write and publish his or her sentiments on all subjects, being responsible for the abuse of this
right. A law may not restrain or abridge liberty of speech or press." Section 3 contains no express
prohibitions: "The people have the right to instruct their representatives, petition government for
redress of grievances, and assemble freely to consult for the common good." To construe such
provisions as regulating private conduct would not be entirely without precedent. The thirteenth
amendment's prohibition against slavery and involuntary servitude, for instance, applies directly
to private action. Also, some recent state constitutional provisions in other jurisdictions have been
drafted in the form of mandates rather than prohibitions. They define rights which the govern-
ment is obliged to secure for the people in that state. See Countryman, supra note 52, at 472.
87. Even though these provisions contain no explicit state action requirement ("A person
may not be deprived of life, liberty or property without due process of law or denied equal protec-
tion of the laws." CAL. CONsT. art. I, § 7(a) (amended 1979)) and there is no legislative history
indicating that they were meant to apply to purely private conduct, People v. Brisendine, 13 Cal.
3d 528, 548, 531 P.2d 1099, 1112, 119 Cal. Rptr. 315, 328 (1975), the court has interpreted them as
requiring some form of state action. Gay Law Students Ass'n v. Pacific Tel. & Tel., 24 Cal. 3d
458, 468, 595 P.2d 592, 598, 156 Cal. Rptr. 14, 20 (1979) (filed two months after Robins). Accord,
Garfinkle v. Superior Court, 21 Cal. 3d 268, 281-82, 578 P.2d 925, 934, 146 Cal. Rptr. 208, 217
(1978); Kruger v. Wells Fargo Bank, 11 Cal. 3d 352, 367, 521 P.2d 441, 450, 113 Cal. Rptr. 449,
458 (1974). One would expect the freedom of speech and right to petition provisions to be treated
similarly, since they also have no specific language or legislative history regarding a state action
requirement. These provisions were originally set forth as §§ 8 and 9 of article 1. The 1849 State
Constitutional Convention borrowed these sections verbatim from the New York Constitution
and adopted them without debate. See R. BROWNE, REPORT OF THE DEBATES IN THE CONVEN-
TION OF CALIFORNIA ON THE FORMATION OF THE STATE CONSTITUTION, IN SEPTEMBER AND
OCTOBER, 1849, at 31, 41-42 (1850); Hunt, The Genesisof California'sFirst Constitution (1846-49),
VII JOHN HOPKINS UNIV. STUD. IN HIsT. & POL. Sci. 56 (1895). In 1974, the provisions were
repealed and re-added as the present §§ 2 and 3. Since the language was preserved, pre-1974
interpretations of §§ 8 and 9 are presumed incorporated in §§ 2 and 3. See Sarracino v. Superior
Court, 13 Cal. 3d 1, 7-8, 529 P.2d 53, 58, 118 Cal. Rptr. 21, 26 (1974).
CALIFORNIA LAW REVIEW [Vol. 68:641
IV
A PROPOSED STATE ACTION REQUIREMENT
94. A state action limitation on the free speech guarantee would not give constitutionalpro-
tection to the property owner's private autonomy interest in denying others free speech access to
his property. The legislature would retain the authority to require him to permit such access
under appropriate circumstances. See, e.g., ALRB v. Superior Court, 16 Cal. 3d 392, 546 P.2d
687, 128 Cal. Rptr. 183, appeal dismissed, 429 U.S. 802 (1976) (upholding regulation by state
administrative agency permitting qualified access to agricultural property by farm labor or-
ganizers). See generally Choper, supra note 34, at 757-58, 762.
95. CAL. CONST. art. I, § 1 could be construed to give the right to personal autonomy consti-
tutional stature: "All people are by nature free and independent and have inalienable rights.
Among these are enjoying and defending life and liberty, acquiring, possessing and protecting
property, and pursuing and obtaining safety, happiness, and privacy." The scope of § I is as yet
unclear, however. Compare People v. Privitera, 23 Cal. 3d 697, 709, 591 P.2d 919, 926, 153 Cal.
Rptr. 431, 438 (1979) (no right of access to drugs of unproven efficiency) with City of Santa Bar-
bara v. Adamson, L.A. 31126 (Cal. Sup. Ct. May 15, 1980) (right to live in "an alternative family"
with persons not related by blood, marriage, or adoption).
96. In its discussion of the state action requirement in relation to the California Constitu-
tion's "equal protection" guarantee, the court in Gay Law Students acknowledged that the "pre-
rogatives of'private autonomy'. . . , may possibly attach to a purely private business enterprise."
24 Cal. 3d at 470, 595 P.2d at 599, 156 Cal. Rptr. at 21. Similarly, Justice Harlan of the United
States Supreme Court has noted that the preservation of personal autonomy is a value served by
the fourteenth amendment's state action limitation:
Underlying the cases involving an alleged denial of equal protection by ostensibly pri-
vate action is a clash between competing constitutional claims of a higher order: liberty
and equality. Freedom of the individual to choose his associates or his neighbors, to use
and dispose of his property as he sees fit, to be irrational, arbitrary, capricious, and even
unjust in his personal relations are things all entitled to a large measure of protection
from governmental interference. This liberty would be overridden, in the name of
equality, if the strictures of the Amendment were applied to governmental and private
action without distinction.
Peterson v. City of Greenville, 373 U.S. 244, 249-590 (1963) (concurring opinion). Accord, Jack-
son v. Metropolitan Edison Co., 419 U.S. 241, 345, 372 (1974) (Marshall, J., dissenting).
97. This adjudication would, of course, have to be consistent with the federally guaranteed
rights of the parties. See generally notes 52-83 and accompanying text supra.
CALIFORNIAl LAW REVIEW [Vol. 68:641
B. A. Shpiting Standard
Since the strengths of the competing constitutional and autonomy
interests will vary considerably in different contexts, a shifting standard
of state action merits serious consideration.1° The court should em-
98. But see Reitman v. Mulkey, 387 U.S. 369 (1967) (overturning a state constitutional
amendment authorizingprivateracial discrimination in housing on the ground that it encouraged
discrimination and therefore constituted state action in contravention of the fourteenth amend-
ment's equal protection clause).
It should be noted that the courts retain considerable authority to redraw accommodations
between conflicting personal and constitutional interests under their inherent judicial power to
develop the common law. But unlike an accommodation set as a result of a state constitutional
adjudication, common law principles can be modified by ordinary statutes. It is much more diffi-
cult to amend the California Constitution. See CAL. CONST. art. XVIII. Hence, the court should,
as a general policy, exercise more caution and restraint in using the California Constitution to
redefine the balance between competing personal and constitutional interests than it does in devel-
oping the common law. See generally Tobriner & Grodin, The Individual and the Public Service
Enterprise in the New IndustrialState, 55 CALIF. L. REv. 1247 (1967).
99. Separation of powers is mandated by the California Constitution: "The powers of state
government are legislative, executive and judicial. Persons charged with the exercise of one power
may not exercise either of the others except as permitted by this Constitution." CAL. CONST. art.
III, § 3. "The Legislative power of this State is vested in the California Legislature. . . , but the
people reserve to themselves thg powers of initiative and referendum." CAL. CONST. art. IV, § 1.
While a state action requirement for the California Constitution's speech and petition provi-
sions would limit the court's power to protect free speech interests, it would not "straightjacket"
the court. As the court's application of the public function doctrine of state action in DiamondI
attests, the state action concept can be flexible and adaptable; in principle, it could be expanded to
encompass every private transaction. See note 33 supra. To go so far would of course vitiate the
utility of the state action requirement. See Glennon & Nowak, 4 FunctionalAnalysisof the Four-
teenth Amendment "StateAction"Requirement, 1976 Sup. CT. REV.221; Haber, Notes on the LIn-
its of Shelley v. Kramer, 18 RUTGERS L. REv.811 (1964); Henkin, Shelly v. Kramer: Notesfor a
Revised Opinion, 110 U. PA. L. Rv. 473 (1962); Horowitz, The Misleading Searchfor 'State Ac-
tion" Under the FourteenthAmendment, 30 So. CAL. L. Rav. 208 (1957). Nevertheless, a prudent
court could apply the state action concept to expand its constitutional jurisdiction only where the
policies favoring judicial intervention are strongest. Constitutional jurisdiction should, however,
be declined in cases where the separation of powers principle is cogent.
100. For example, to require a small businessman to abide by state constitutional standards of
"equal protection" in hiring and firing personnel might seriously impinge upon his freedom to
choose those with whom he wishes to associate. See Gay Law Students Ass'n v: Pacific Tel. &
TeL, 24 Cal. 3d at 470, 595 P.2d at 599, 156 Cal. Rptr. at 21. It might also expose him to the
economic costs associated with the threat of meritless employment discrimination litigation. The
1980] CONSTITUTIONAL LAW
ploy a more stringent standard of state action where the private auton-
omy interests are substantial. In such instances, the separation of
powers principle dictates that the court refrain from supplanting the
legislature's determination of the proper balance between the compet-
ing constitutional and autonomy interests with its own view. When the
balance between the conflicting interests decidedly favors the protec-
tion of constitutional interests, however, the court should apply a less
stringent standard of state action. 10 1
A "shifting standard" approach to the "state encouragement" the-
ory of state action 0 2 has previously received judicial attention. Several
United States Supreme Court Justices have argued that government
should be required to make every effort not to lend assistance to propo-
nents of racial discrimination.0 3 Judicial enforcement of such a re-
quirement would entail applying a more liberal standard of state action
when "equal protection" claims are presented. Although the Court has
never officially adopted the policy,"° numerous federal decisions have
observed that the federal courts do in fact apply a more liberal stan-
dard to cases presenting "equal protection" claims than to cases
presenting "due process" claims.10
It has been argued that the standard of state action should not turn
losses in terms of private autonomy and efficiency would be similarly great if "due process" guar-
antees were extended to purely private business transactions. Cf. Garfinkle v. Superior Court, 21
Cal. 3d at 277, 578 P.2d at 931, 146 Cal. Rptr. at 214 (No state action in nonjudicial foreclosure
procedure pursuant to powers of sale clause in deeds of trust); Kruger v. Wells Fargo Bank, 11
Cal. 3d at 366, 521 P.2d at 449, 113 Cal. Rptr. at 457 (No state action in bank's procedure of
"setting-off' charge account debts against depositor's checking account).
The intrusion on the businessman's private autonomy interests is not so great where he is
required to permit limited speech activity on property he has opened to the general public for
business purposes. So long as these activities are conducted in such a way as not to interfere with
normal business operations, the intrusion on his private autonomy interests will be slight.
101. The merits of using a "shifting standard" approach to state action under a state constitu-
tion are even greater than in the fourteenth amendment state action context. Since it is extremely
difficult to amend the United States Constitution, expanding federal constitutional rights seriously
intrudes upon the legislative domain. Since it is much easier to amend the California Constitu-
tion, the potential affront to the legislative process is considerably less for judicial expansions of
state constitutionalguarantees.
102. See note 33 supra.
103. See Jackson v. Metropolitan Edison Co., 419 U.S. 345, 374 (1974) (Marshall, J., dissent-
ing); Adickes v. S.H. Kress & Co., 398 U.S. 144, 190-91 (1970) (Brennan, J., concurring and dis-
senting).
104. Jackson v. Metropolitan Edison Co., 419 U.S. at 373-74 (Marshall, J., dissenting).
105. Gay Law Students Ass'n v. Pacific Tel. & Tel., 24 Cal. 3d at 473 n.9, 595 P.2d at 601-02
n.9, 156 Cal. Rptr. at 23-24 n.9 (citing Weise v. Syracuse Univ., 522 F.2d 397, 403-08 (2d Cir.
1975), and R.I. Chapter, Assoc. Gen. Contractors v. Kreps, 450 F. Supp. 338, 350 n.6 (D.R.I.
1978)).
In Gay Law Students, the California Supreme Court spoke approvingly of this practice of the
federal courts. 24 Cal. 3d at 473 n.9, 595 P.2d at 602 n.9, 156 Cal. Rptr. at 24 n.9. It did not,
however, expressly adopt a "shifting standard" approach to state action analysis in relation to the
California Constitution's civil liberties guarantees.
CALZFORPATI LAW REVIEW [Vol. 68:641
C Application to Robins
Robins was an appropriate case for applying a liberal standard of
public function state action. Pruneyard Shopping Center performed a
traditional public function by providing the functional equivalent of a
"town center""' 4 or "community business block.""' 5 In addition, the
public's free speech interests in gaining access were substantial, 1 6 and
the owner's private autonomy interest in excluding all free speech ac-
tivity was especially weak.
Exclusionary property rights ordinarily serve two important pri-
vate autonomy interests: privacy and enjoyment. Where the owner has
not opened his property to the public, his discretionary right to exclude7
unfavored parties serves substantial privacy and enjoyment interests."
The operation of residential property should therefore clearly not be
deemed state action for purposes of determining the scope of free
speech access rights. Since the shopping center owner has opened his
property to the general public for commercial purposes, however, his
expectation of privacy has been substantially diminished." 8 Moreover,
as long as he may adopt reasonable regulations to ensure that the
speech does not interfere with his business operations, the burden on
his enjoyment interest will be insubstantial." 9
This rationale, suggesting that the businessman who has opened
his property to the general public has no substantial private autonomy
interest in totally excluding free speech activity, applies to the owner of
114. Diamond1, 3 Cal. 3d at 660, 477 P.2d at 737, 91 Cal. Rptr. at 505.
115. Food Employees Local 590 v. Logan Valley Plaza, Inc., 391 U.S. at 319.
116. Like the traditional town centers they have displaced, shopping centers are especially
well suited to serve as effective forums of communication for citizen groups lacking the financial
resources necessary to effectively utilize alternative forums such as the popular media. Moreover,
access to effective free speech forums is especially important in states like California where the
people enjoy the right to initiate change through initiative, referendum, and recall. CAL. CONST.
art. II, §§ 8, 9 & 13-15. See also note 20 supra.
117. See notes 72-73 and accompanying text supra.
118. Food Employees Local 590 v. Logan Valley Plaza, Inc., 391 U.S. at 324. Cf. Eastex, Inc.
v. NLRB, 437 U.S. 556, 573 (1978) (since employees are already rightfully on the employer's
premises, only his management interests and not property interests are implicated in a regulation
protecting the employees' right to engage in limited distribution of literature on the worksite).
Under the common law, the more a business enterprise became "affected with a public interest,"
the more it was required to submit to public control for the common good. Munn v. Illinois, 94
U.S. 113, 126 (1876). For a more contemporary application of this principle, see Gay Law Stu-
dents Ass'n v. Pacific Tel. & Tel., 24 Cal. 3d at 476, 595 P.2d at 603, 156 Cal. Rptr. at 25. While
there may be instances when the owner would be deeply offended by the political or social
message an advocate might seek to convey at the shopping center, a businessman opening his
commercial premises to the general public must be prepared to tolerate people he finds personally
offensive. In re Cox, 3 Cal. 3d 205, 224-25, 474 P.2d 992, 1005, 90 Cal. Rptr. 24, 37 (1974).
119. Robins v. Pruneyard Shopping Center, 23 Cal. 3d at 911, 592 P.2d at 335-36, 153 Cal.
Rptr. at 860-61.
C,4LIFORNi4 L,4W REVIEW [.
[Vol. 68:641
CONCLUSION
* A.B. 1971, University of California, Santa Cruz; M.A. 1973, University of California,
Davis; C. Phil. 1977, University of California, Davis; third-year student, Boalt Hall School of
Law.