When last we checked in on the world of sign codes, Thomas v. Bright had replaced Reed v. Town of Gilbert (2015) as the case to watch regarding the regulation of exterior signage.

To recap: In Thomas v. Bright, a case that originated in Tennessee, the U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the ruling of a federal district court that the government cannot distinguish between on-premise and off-premise signage because it is an unconstitutional content-based distinction. The decision had the potential to change the way that signs are regulated across the country and the way that the sign industry does business. Tennessee appealed that case to the Supreme Court, and in summer 2020, the Supreme Court denied certiorari (fewer than four justices determined that the circumstances of the decision of the lower court warranted a review by the Supreme Court).

“So that is the law of the land in the states covered by the 6th Circuit,” said David Hickey, VP of advocacy, of the International Sign Association (ISA).