"NEW YORK - A divided federal appeals court on Thursday affirmed that parts of Kansas' "ag-gag" law - among the first laws in the nation restricting undercover animal rights activists - violates the First Amendment, upholding a permanent prohibition against the state enforcing the provisions.

In a 2-1 decision, a panel of the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected Kansas' appeal of two Kansas City federal court rulings that say sections of the Kansas Farm Animal and Field Crop and Research Facilities Protection Act runs afoul of free speech protections. The law is aimed at deterring undercover efforts by activists like co-plaintiff the Animal Legal Defense Fund (ALDF) to document animal abuse at livestock operations.

Representatives for Kansas Governor Laura Kelly and the state's attorney general, the appellants in the case, did not immediately respond to requests for comment."

Sebastien Malo reports for Reuters August 19, 2021. [2]