North Dakota lawyer Arnold Fleck practices family law. So it made sense that he’d be interested when a ballot initiative was proposed to change how courts handle child custody cases. He supported the initiative and even donated $1,000 to the “yes” campaign.
Unfortunately, he was also donating to the “no” campaign.
That wasn’t his choice. But, like all North Dakota lawyers, Fleck was required to join the state’s bar association and pay it hundreds of dollars per year for membership dues. The Association then used some of that money to oppose the measure — just as it often takes positions on political issues and even lobbies the state legislature. So in the same campaign in which he supported the “yes” side, Fleck was also forced to chip in for the Bar Association’s $50,000 donation to the “no” side.
It’s unconstitutional to force people to subsidize a political campaign they disagree with — and now, Fleck is asking the Supreme Court to take his case to vindicate his First Amendment rights.
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