Jonathan W. Emord, Esq.

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Jonathan W. Emord has been practicing constitutional and administrative law before the federal courts and agencies since 1985. Having begun his career as an attorney in the Federal Communications Commission during the administration of President Ronald Reagan, Emord has maintained an abiding conviction to achieve full First Amendment protection for the freedoms of speech and press. In 1991, he authored the critically acclaimed Freedom, Technology, and the First Amendment in which he chronicled the intellectual foundations of the First Amendment and advocated replacing government control over the airwaves with a title registry, private property rights approach. Emord has practiced law for a number of well-respected firms, including Wiley, Rein & Fielding, and served as a Cato Institute Vice-President.

He practices constitutional law, food and drug law, deceptive advertising law, administrative law, libel law, and unfair competition law.  He served as lead counsel in the Pearson v. Shalala (D.C. Cir. 1999); Pearson v. Shalala (D.D.C. 2001); Pearson v. Thompson (D.D.C. 2001); Whitaker v. Thompson (D.D.C. 2002); Alliance for Natural Health v. Sebelius (D.D.C. 2010) and Alliance for Natural Health v. Sebelius (D.D.C. 2011) cases, holding FDA censorship of nutrient-disease relationship claims unconstitutional. He also served as lead counsel in Center for Science in the Public Interest et al. v. FDA (D.D.C. 2004); Nutraceutical Corp. v. Crawford (D.Ut. 2005); In re Novelty Distributors, DEA Docket No. 08-33 (May 21, 2008); Albion Intern., Inc. v. American Intern. Chemical, Inc., No. 2:07-cv-0994, 2012 WL 3776866 (D. Utah 2012); In re ECM BioFilms, Inc. d/b/a Enviroplastics International, FTC Dkt. 9358 (2013-2017); and Federal Trade Commission v. Lunada Biomedical, Inc., et al., No. CV-15-3380-MWF(PLA) (C.D. Cal. 2015).  Emord is admitted to practice in the states of Illinois, Virginia, and the District of Columbia. He is admitted to practice before the United States Supreme Court; the United States Courts of Appeal for the D.C., Fourth, Seventh, Ninth, Tenth, and Federal Circuits; the United States Court of International Trade; the United States Court of Federal Claims; and the United States District Courts for the District of Columbia, Eastern District of Virginia, Northern District of Illinois, and Western District of Wisconsin.  He is the only non-scientist member of the Board of Directors of the Board for the Certification of Nutrition Specialists.  In 2010, he became the first person awarded the title “Honorary Nutrition Specialist” by the CBNS.  He is a 1982 graduate (B.A., Political Science and History) of the University of Illinois where he was an Edmund J. James Scholar and a 1985 graduate (J.D.) of DePaul University.  He is routinely consulted by industry, Congress, and the media on regulatory issues that affect health freedom.  He is a Guest Lecturer at the Georgetown University, Department of Biochemistry, Course in Nutrition and at the Georgetown University Law Center, Alternative, Complementary, and Integrative Medicine Legal Issues Course.  Mr. Emord is a columnist for USA Today Magazine and co-host of the Sacred Fire of Liberty Hour on the Robert Scott Bell Show.  He has appeared as an expert commentator on the Fox Business Channel (Stossel); PBS; and numerous national radio programs, including seventeen appearances on Coast to Coast AM with George Noory.  

Jonathan Emord is a Top Rated Lawyer in the DC/Metro Area as rated by Martindale-Hubbell and ALM Media, and has been listed by Martindale-Hubbell as AV Preeminent for decades.

Professional Publications:

• Jonathan W. Emord, The Authoritarians (Morgan James Publishing, 2021)
• Jonathan W. Emord, “EFSA, FDA Cast a Nutrition Dark Age,” Food Technology, Vol. 67, No. 6 (June 2013)
• Restore the Republic (2012)
• Global Censorship of Health Information (2010)
• The Rise of Tyranny (2008)
• Freedom, Technology, and the First Amendment (1991)
• “The First Amendment Invalidity of FCC Ownership Regulations,” 38 Catholic University Law Review 401-469 (1989)
• “Contrived Distinctions: The Doctrine of Commercial Speech in First Amendment Jurisprudence,” Cato Institute Policy Analysis (September 23, 1991)
• “The First Amendment Invalidity of FCC Content Regulations,” 6 Notre Dame Journal of Law, Ethics & Public Policy 93-215 (1992)
• “Murder by Medicare: The Demise of Solo and Small Group Medical Practices,” 21Regulation 31-39 (1998)
• “Pearson v. Shalala: The Beginning of the End for FDA Speech Suppression,” 19 Journal of Public Policy & Marketing 1 (2000)

Lay Publications:

Numerous newspaper and magazine articles. In addition, the following monographs:

• What to Do When the FDA Shows Up: A Practitioner’s Guide (1995)
• What to Do When the Licensing Board’s Investigator Shows Up: A Practitioner’s Guide (1995)
• What to Do When the FDA Shows Up: A Manufacturer and Distributor’s Guide (1995)
• Legal Labeling: A Guide for Compliance with Regulations Governing Health Claims and Statements of Nutritional Support (1996)
• The Comprehensive Legal Guide for Doctors (with Todd A. Harrison and Claudia A. Lewis-Eng) (1997)
• Medicare Part B: Problems and Solutions for Complementary Care Practitioners (with Todd A. Harrison) (1996)

Teaching Credits:

• Guest Lecturer, Georgetown University, Department of Biochemistry, Course in Nutrition (Dr. Harry G. Preuss)
• Guest Lecturer, Georgetown University Law Center, “Alternative, Complementary, and Integrative Medicine, Legal Issues Course” (Professor Sherman L. Cohn)

Awards:

• “Honorary Nutrition Specialist,” awarded by the Certification Board for Nutritional Specialists (CBNS) (2010)
• Pure Encapsulations’ First Amendment Champion Award (1999)
• Cancer Control Society’s Humanitarian Award (2007)
• Alliance for Natural Health’s Health Liberty Award (2014)
• Youngevity International, Inc.’s Champion of Liberty Award (2014)
• Youngevity International, Inc.’s Hall of Fame Award (2016)
• Citizens Commission on Human Rights Humanitarian of the Year (2017)
• Top Rated Lawyer – Avvo.com (2019)
• America’s Most Honored Professionals – Top 10% – American Registry (2019)
• Top Rated Lawyer in the DC/Metro Area as rated by Martindale-Hubbell and ALM Media

* The Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review Rating organization has awarded Jonathan W. Emord its AV Preeminent rating, its highest in both legal ability and ethical standards –– and the Martindale-Hubbell Silver Client Champion award, recognizing attorneys for their commitment to the best in client service. Client Review Rating 5.0 out of 5.0.   

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Recent Posts by Jonathan W. Emord, Esq.

• How FDA and EFSA Prior Restraints Defeat Government Objectives and Foster Fraud and Deception
• FDA PRESUMES ITSELF OMNISCIENT AND CONSUMERS IGNORANT
• CMS Proposes Exclusive Niche for RDs in Medical Nutrition Therapy
• Drug Industry Acquisition of the Supplement Marketplace
• Device Companies Taxed to Death
• EU Maximum Vitamin and Mineral Dose Levels
• The Uncoupling of Injury from Adulteration
• The Rule of Innocent Construction
• FDA’s Unbridled Discretion Over Supplement Adulteration
• FDA’s Evisceration of the Labeling Exemption in 21 USC 343-2