Raleigh, North Carolina — The North Carolina state commission that regulates land surveyors has ruled that it did not violate constitutional rights when it ordered a drone pilot to stop advertising and providing aerial mapping services because he did not have a state license. A federal appeals court ruled Monday.
A panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit upheld the trial court's ruling, ruling that the free speech protections of Michael Jones and his 360 Virtual Drone Services business are no longer required by the state to provide surveying services. It was determined that there was no violation of license requirements.
This case marks a new conflict between technologies that are disrupting the regulated profession of surveying in the field. National licensing requires educational and technical experience, which may include exams and practicums.
Jones sought to expand his career as a drone pilot by taking composite images that help construction companies and others get a bird's-eye view of land of interest. The North Carolina State Board of Engineers and Surveyors Examiners began investigating his activities in late 2018.
The commission sent a letter to Mr Jones in June 2019 asking him to stop “cartography, surveying, photogrammetry, presentation of accuracy, provision of location and dimensional data, production of orthomosaic maps, quantitative and topographical information”. commanded. Performing surveying work without a license may result in civil and criminal liability.
By then, Jones had posted a disclaimer on his website saying the maps were not a substitute for proper surveys needed for mortgages, title insurance and land use applications. Although he ceased efforts to develop his mapping business, he remained interested in returning to the field in the future, according to Monday's opinion. So in 2021, he sued the board members on First Amendment grounds.
U.S. District Judge Louise Flanagan sided with board members last year, ruling that the rule would withstand scrutiny because it created a generally applicable licensing system that primarily regulates conduct, not speech.
Circuit Judge Jim Winn, writing the unanimous opinion for the three-commissioner panel on Monday, said it can be difficult to determine whether such business bans amount to significant restrictions on speech.
“Even where regulations are in fact aimed at professional conduct, countries must be able to clearly explain how their regulations are well-guided to promote substantive national interests.” he said.
In this case, it's important that people can trust that surveyors will provide accurate maps, Wynne wrote. There's also no evidence that the maps Jones wants to create will be “unpopular or dissenting,” Wynn said.
He wrote that “there is a public interest in ensuring that individuals have an incentive to go through that rigorous process to train as surveyors,” adding that licensing laws “prevent potential problems that may arise from the wrong land. It protects consumers from harmful economic and legal consequences.” measurement. ”
Sam Gedge, an attorney with the Office for Justice who is representing Mr. Jones, said Monday that Mr. Jones and his client have no right to proceed through either the entire Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond, Virginia, or the U.S. Supreme Court. He said he would like to further appeal the case.
Monday's ruling states that “states can make it a crime to share certain types of photos without a government-issued license, and such laws somehow do not regulate 'speech.' We do so on the basis of this theory,” Gedge wrote in an email. “That reasoning is deeply flawed. Taking photos and providing information to willing customers is speech and fully protected by the First Amendment.”
Wynn, a former North Carolina Court of Appeals judge, was joined in Monday's opinion by Circuit Court Judges Stephen Agee and Stephanie Tucker.
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