The First Amendment provides protection to public employees who are retaliated against for their speech or who lose their jobs due to political associations. The U.S. Supreme Court has developed a highly nuanced and complex body of law to address these issues.

This course seeks to introduce you to some of the leading cases and principles in this area of the law. Please keep in mind that the federal courts of appeals may be split on different issues, or apply slightly different tests. There are even intra-circuit conflicts, as three-judge panel decisions in the same circuit may analyze public-employee First Amendment claims differently.