WASHINGTON _ The Supreme Court cast doubt Monday on laws in 31 states that require lawyers to pay dues to bar associations.
In June, the justices struck down state laws that required teachers and other public employees to pay fees to support a union. By a 5-4 vote, the court in Janus v. AFSCME said this requirement violated the free speech rights of employees who did not support the union.
That case proved helpful to lawyers challenging mandatory bar association fees based on the same principle. In a brief order on Monday, the court overturned a lower court ruling that had upheld bar dues in North Dakota and sent the case back "for further consideration in light of Janus."
Although the decision in Fleck v. Wetch is a not a final ruling, it strongly suggests the court's majority now doubts the constitutionality of requiring lawyers to support a private bar association.
Many states, however, depend on bar associations to regulate the practice of law and to discipline attorneys who violate ethics rules. In 1990, the high court upheld mandatory bar dues in a California case, but that decision rested on the principle that held states could require public employees to pay fees.
