Limits on corporate and union political expenditures during election cycles violate the Free Speech Clause of the First Amendment. Corporations and labor unions can spend unlimited sums in support of or in opposition to candidates as long as the spending is independent of the candidates. Decided January 21, 2010 (argued March 1, 2009). Opinion of the Court: Anthony Kennedy → go there Applied: the First Amendment → go there Topic: Freedom of speech and of the press. Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, 558 U.S. 310 (2010), is a landmark decision of the Supreme Court of the United States ruling that certain campaign finance restrictions are inconsistent with the Free Speech Clause of the First Amendment. The court struck down Section 203 of the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act, which prohibited "electioneering communications" paid for by corporations, labor unions, and other organizations. The Supreme Court ruled in favor of Citizens United in a 5-4 decision, with Justice Anthony Kennedy writing the majority opinion. All Democratic-appointed justices dissented. Wiki link