What Does It Mean to Solicit Under the Law?
While they can be as simple as a piece of paper with the words "No Soliciting", what exactly does a "No Soliciting" sign mean to those who come across it? The language is confusing, so it’s important to look at what does "soliciting" mean under the law.
Solicting is defined by the ordinance as an individual(s) who requests immediate charitable contributions or donations intended for future delivery to public or private purposes. The term includes, but is not limited to, salesmen, agents, solicitors, sales persons, peddlers and hawkers.
For the purposes of this section, solicit shall include to request a contribution of money at any time, whether in person or by telephone.
What about soliciting for religious reasons? According to the ordinance, the code does not apply to individuals, companies or business firms that are conducting themselves lawfully. However, court cases have held that even without the ordinance, religious organizations can still be sued for trespassing if they ignore "no soliciting" signs.
A property owner cannot subjectively discriminate against individuals. For instance, a property owner may want to put a "no soliciting" sign up to prevent religious groups from soliciting . When the religious persons sue, a court would look at whether the owner was allowing all solicitors including the religious group to solicit. If the owner did not prohibit other types of soliciting (real estate agents, salespersons, etc.), a court may determine that the owner was only prohibiting a certain segment of the solicitation population.
Case law suggests that only solicitation connected with the sale of goods and services is subject to a regulatory scheme. Courts have held that any exceptions from professional business solicitation are inapplicable to religious activity. The theory behind that decision is that any ban or regulation ought to be specifically directed to a single, clearly identifiable class of businesses, such as commercial solicitors, individuals desiring to sell periodic publications, or groups asking for donations to a charity or religious organization, rather than to groups engaging in speech protected by the constitution.
Religious soliciting is different from commercial solicitation. Religious activity may not fall under the ordinance because they are not "personal" by way of a good or service being sold.
Are No Soliciting Signs Legally Enforceable?
In small communities, people don’t like to see signs that spoil the nice aesthetic look they have been working years to create. The placement of large signs that scream "NO SOLICITING" isn’t the most beautiful thing and although the signs do serve a purpose, there are many people that think the placement of such signs is a bit overboard. People prefer to put up smaller?
The truth, besides the aesthetic look of it, is that the signs are a legal declaration that may or not be legally binding at all. A "no soliciting" sign does not have any jurisdiction by law if there is no law to back it up in the locality or state. If there are laws concerning soliciting and door to door sales in your community, the sign will be enforced. If there are no local or state laws preventing soliciting, the sign is more than likely not enforceable. The reasons that signs are not legally binding in most states are the same reasons that buildings and businesses aren’t legally binding. Not everyone follows the rules. Not everyone is trustworthy or responsible. Someone has to keep people in line.
Sadly, that means that there are still criminals that go door to door looking for certain people to rob, but to think that "no soliciting" signs are legally binding and are going to keep them away is a bit naïve. People like to knock on plenty of doors to see what brands of other products have been used in the past. That’s a market. There are a lot of people that are selling certain security systems that might have been installed in your home. Maybe you’ve gotten a phone call about this before. What that person is really trying to do is get into your home to learn more about security systems so that they can sell their own system. That’s a market. People canvass to learn to understand your concerns so that they can apply them to their own pitch to get you to buy their product.
So if you have a no soliciting sign on your property and a sales person comes to your door anyway, they haven’t broken the law. They’re just annoying you and wasting your time. If there are laws in place in your community regarding door to door sales, you may contact the police and request that they send someone out to talk to this person to leave. If there are no laws in place about soliciting or door to door sales, you’re basically stuck with ignoring the sign and closing the door. This is particularly true of businesses that have solicitors coming to door. Slapping a sign on the window doesn’t stop people from coming in and trying to sell you on something. So when people walk in and you’re annoyed at this, you deal with it.
No Soliciting Sign Exceptions
There are some possibilities for exceptions to the enforcement of "No Soliciting" signs. Government representatives (city officials, fire department representatives, census workers, etc.) may claim that they have a right to approach your home for whatever purpose they are seeking. Religion and religious organizations can be intimidating issues for many homeowners. Religious groups will claim that they have a First Amendment right to speak to you even though there is a posted "No Soliciting" sign in place. In many jurisdictions, however, an ordinance or other administrative procedure is specifically in place prohibiting religious groups from canvassing residential neighborhoods. The same applies to political canvassing. Some jurisdictions allow political canvassing during certain times only and submission of a permit prior to canvassing is often required. Some homeowners associations do not allow any canvassing or soliciting. This sort of ban should be checked with your local governing authority.
No Soliciting Sign and Local Ordinances
Local ordinances and laws can impact the power of a "No Soliciting" sign. Even if you don’t live in a gated community, some ordinances do say that it is illegal to solicit on private property without permission in certain areas. Local ordinances can impact stairways and other areas that are not publically owned but are used to access commercial areas or residential areas.
Different municipalities have different regulations, and some states do not allow individual communities to make such regulations. In general, however "no soliciting" signs are tolerated in many jurisdictions and are actually backed by ordinances or laws.
In Puertas v. Yates, in 2005, a federal court considered the constitutionality of a San Diego ordinance, which prohibits such "section 630.10 Conditions for Solicitation". This ordinance was challenged because Yates, who was running for mayor in 2012, went door to door soliciting votes … even though there was a "No Soliciting" sign on the gate to the community (a gated community). The Court held that the "no soliciting" sign should have been observed .
In 2015 in California, the court ruled that "courts have upheld the constitutionality of a city ordinance prohibiting solicitation in areas in which a "No Trespassing" sign has been posted. United States v. Turley, (9th Cir. 2015).
In Urban Department Store v. City of Baton Rouge, (La. 2000), the question was whether The City of Baton Rouge’s requirement that commercial properties conspicuously post "no soliciting" signs undermined free speech, and required permits to erect the signs, was unconstitutional. The court disagreed holding that the ordinance was not unconstitutional.
In Pennsylvania, three separate courts, the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas, the State Supreme Court and the Commonwealth Court held that "a sign that says "No trespassing, soliciting, posting" is constitutional and that such no trespassing signs should be observed.
In New York, a New York Supreme Court decision stated that ignoring a "No Soliciting" sign did violate the law and could result in the loss of a solicitor’s permit.
Enforcing No Soliciting Signs – Practical Considerations
Whether its door-to-door and multi-family housing or single-family, "no soliciting" policies can be difficult to enforce. First, owners and associations need to be aware of the Florida law discussed above. Property owners and associations can post a sign on their property advising of a no soliciting policy (provided that the sign does not violate any applicable zoning requirements) and can advise individuals who are soliciting on the property of their no soliciting policy. Most jurisdictions will allow signs on private property.
As discussed above, not all signs are created equally. At minimum, an effective no soliciting sign will have one or both of the following: A common approach to enforcing "no soliciting" policies is to have a member of the board or committee contact companies that are soliciting on the property. If the company is present on the property after receiving a warning, property owners and associations are often successful in having the company removed from the property. Property owners and associations can also contact the company’s ethics, human resource or legal department for compliance with a "no soliciting" policy. Involving the "parent" company can be a successful strategy as it is often in these companies best interests to avoid negative publicity resulting from an encounter with property owners and associations implementing and enforcing a no soliciting policy.
In some cases, individuals will continue to ignore repeatedly being advised of the association’s no soliciting policy. In these circumstances, property owners and associations have the ability to call the local police and request that the individual be trespassed from the property. The police department may ask the individual to leave, especially if the individual has been given notice of the no soliciting policy verbally or through a sign, or may charge the individual with trespassing, particularly if the individual has been previously warned verbally or in writing.
Legal Actions and Consequences
The legal remedies for violators are not very extensive. A landowner may call the police, but unless the violator is making threatening or illegal comments, it is unlikely that the police will get involved. Similarly, the person who violates a "No Soliciting" sign may be trespassing . Therefore, if you see someone continue to knock on your door after you have told them to stop, you have the right to call the police. If a business is making deliveries to your home, they will likely have delivery vehicle permits or some sort of permission to be there. Nevertheless, you should remind them that you do not want solicitor(s) at your property.