When is an independent expenditure-only committee, or Super PAC, truly independent of the candidate the Super PAC supports?  Surprisingly few courts in the post-Citizens United world have decided this question.  A recent Vermont Superior Court decision, however, provides a rare example of a court grappling with this issue.

The case involved allegations of coordination between Vermont Attorney General candidate William Sorrell and a Super PAC supporting Sorrell.  After appearing in a joint press conference to endorse Sorrell, former Vermont Governor Howard Dean allegedly consulted with the Super PAC about the media placement of a television advertisement he narrated in support of Sorrell.  Sorrell’s general election opponent alleged that Dean’s actions meant that the Sorrell campaign and the Super PAC had coordinated their activities and that, consequently, the Super PAC was not independent of the candidate.  The Vermont Superior Court rejected this argument.  In doing so, the court emphasized that the opponent had failed to establish under Vermont’s coordination laws that the Sorrell campaign “consented” to Dean’s acting on its behalf or otherwise “controlled” Dean’s actions.  The court also highlighted the absence of evidence that confidential information was obtained by Dean or shared with the Super PAC.

Importantly, the case was decided only after an evidentiary hearing.  The case therefore illustrates why complex fact issues—such as those involving agency and the sharing of confidential information—may pose challenges to defendants seeking to dismiss coordination claims at the pleadings stage.  In any event, although relatively few at present, we anticipate that legal battles like this one over the definition of “coordination” and Super PAC “independence” may well be at the forefront of campaign finance litigation in the coming years.

Photo of Zachary G. Parks Zachary G. Parks

Zachary Parks advises corporations, trade associations, campaigns, and high-net worth individuals on their most important and challenging political law problems.

Chambers USA describes Zachary as “highly regarded by his clients in the political law arena,” noting that clients praised him as their “go-to outside…

Zachary Parks advises corporations, trade associations, campaigns, and high-net worth individuals on their most important and challenging political law problems.

Chambers USA describes Zachary as “highly regarded by his clients in the political law arena,” noting that clients praised him as their “go-to outside attorney for election law, campaign finance, pay-to-play and PAC issues.” Zachary is also a leading lawyer in the emerging corporate political disclosure field, regularly advising corporations on these issues.

Zachary’s expertise includes the Federal Election Campaign Act, the Lobbying Disclosure Act, the Ethics in Government Act, the Foreign Agents Registration Act, and the Securities and Exchange Commission’s pay-to-play rules. He has also helped clients comply with the election and political laws of all 50 states. Zachary also frequently leads political law due diligence for investment firms and corporations during mergers and acquisitions.

He routinely advises corporations and corporate executives on instituting political law compliance programs and conducts compliance training for senior corporate executives and lobbyists. He also has extensive experience conducting corporate internal investigations concerning campaign finance and lobbying law compliance and has defended his political law clients in investigations by the Federal Election Commission, the U.S. Department of Justice, Congressional committees, and in litigation.

Zachary is also the founder and chair of the J. Reuben Clark Law Society’s Political and Election Law Section.

Zachary also has extensive complex litigation experience, having litigated major environmental claims, class actions, and multi-district proceedings for financial institutions, corporations, and public entities.

From 2005 to 2006, Zachary was a law clerk for Judge Thomas B. Griffith on the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia.