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One year ago, on June 24, 2022, the Supreme Court held in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization that the U.S. Constitution does not provide a right to abortion. The decision, presaged by an unparalleled leak, sparked immediate controversy and fanned the flames of a monumental and divisive social wildfire in American society.
Like everyone else, lawyers have taken positions along Dobbs’ dividing lines—both in private and in public. Anyone who has spent time on social media in the last year has seen the effects of the deepened cultural chasm post-Dobbs. But perhaps unlike everyone else, some lawyers have experienced backlash for opining on the decision while at work. In 2022, at least two lawyers claimed they were fired from their law firms for expressing their opinions on Dobbs. Besides abortion, recent and pending U.S. Supreme Court cases implicate gun control, student loan forgiveness, religious rights, LGBTQ+ rights, and affirmative action in higher education. With these polarizing issues at stake in our highly individualized powder keg of a culture, it is no wonder Americans disagree about the cases and their outcomes. But can lawyers talk about them at work?
