Bar Associations See ‘Shot Across the Bow’ in Speech Challenge

Mandatory state bar associations should review how they communicate with members after the Fifth Circuit ruled that health advice from the Louisiana Bar Association was out of bounds, law professors and a former state bar leader say.

A Louisiana lawyer’s First Amendment rights were violated when that state’s mandatory bar association offered wellness tips and promoted Pride month on social media in messages that didn’t sufficiently relate to the practice of law, the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit said.

The case is one of several in recent years in which attorneys have challenged mandatory state bar ...