A federal appeals court has breathed new life into Scott Jensen's long-running First Amendment fight with Minnesota's medical licensing board, reversing two lower-court dismissals and clearing the way for his lawsuit to move forward. The ruling lands just weeks after Jensen won the Republican primary for Minnesota State Auditor, giving the physician-turned-politician fresh legal and political momentum at the same time.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit revived Jensen's lawsuit against the Minnesota Board of Medical Practice, according to MPR News. Jensen filed the suit in 2023, alleging the board targeted him for investigation over his public statements about COVID-19, and the appellate panel's decision undoes rulings from U.S. District Judge Jerry Blackwell, who twice threw out the case — first in March 2024 and again in April 2025 — finding that Jensen lacked legal standing because his claims of speech suppression did not amount to a concrete injury, according to Alpha News.
Appeals court Judge David Stras wrote that years of investigations by the medical board caused Jensen to speak less and spend more, per MPR News's reporting. Jensen sued the board on First Amendment grounds, arguing he had to self-censor his campaign messaging while running for governor against Governor Tim Walz. The lawsuit also named individual board members appointed by Walz, along with Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, as defendants, according to CBS Minnesota.
Years of Complaints, No Discipline
The medical board's scrutiny of Jensen was extensive. Between July 2020 and March 2023, the board opened five separate investigations covering 18 total complaints tied to Jensen's public statements about COVID-19 policies and death certificate data, per the Upper Midwest Law Center. None of those 18 complaints came from patients Jensen actually treated, and none involved clinical care or medical malpractice, the group notes.
The investigations found no cause for findings or discipline, according to Alpha News. Before the pandemic, Jensen had practiced family medicine in Minnesota for more than 40 years without a single board investigation and was named the state's 2016 Minnesota Family Practice Doctor of the Year, per the Upper Midwest Law Center.
Jensen's Reaction and Political Framing
Jensen said he feels vindicated by the appeals court's decision, telling MPR News the lawsuit is bigger than one family doctor who felt squashed. He added that the reversal will remind voters he is willing to take a stand and fight through difficult things — a message he's leaning into as he campaigns statewide.
Jensen is represented by the Upper Midwest Law Center, a public-interest conservative firm, alongside lead attorney Greg Joseph, according to the Upper Midwest Law Center. Tuesday's reversal is widely seen as a win for Jensen both legally and politically, arriving in the middle of his run for a statewide executive office.
A Statewide Race for the Auditor's Office
Jensen, a physician who previously served a single term as a Republican state senator representing Minnesota's District 47 in Carver County from 2017 to 2021, ran unsuccessfully for governor against Walz in 2022 before launching his current bid. He won the Republican primary for Minnesota State Auditor on August 11 with 66.7% of the vote, or 258,740 ballots, defeating GOP-endorsed candidate Nate George, according to FOX 9.
The State Auditor's office oversees roughly $60 billion in local government spending across Minnesota's cities, counties, and special districts. The seat is open in November 2026 after DFL incumbent Julie Blaha announced in September 2025 that she would not seek re-election, per FOX 9. Jensen faces DFL-endorsed candidate Zach Filipovich, a former Duluth city council member and accountant, and Forward Independence candidate Jay Reeves, an Army veteran, according to MPR News.
What Comes Next
With the Eighth Circuit's reversal, the lawsuit can continue.
