Heffernan v. City of Paterson (14-1280)
argument 14-1280Heffernan v. City of Paterson
Supreme Court of the United States
59 min
5 speakers
8 chapters
transcribed 7 days ago
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What First Amendment right is the plaintiff claiming in Heffernan v. City of Paterson?
We will hear argument first this morning in Case 14-1280, Heffernan v. City of Patterson, New Jersey. Mr. Frost.
MR. Mr. Chief, Justice, and may it please the Court, public employees have a right not to be demoted on patronage grounds. It does not matter if you are affiliated with a specific party or that you are non-affiliated. It does not matter. if you are mistakenly perceived by your employer or supervisor that you're engaged in political association, to be protected by the First Amendment.
How would you define the right at issue in this case?
The issue here
is — How would you define the right that your client wishes this Court to vindicate?
I'm defining the right in that, pursuant to Elrod and its progeny, that there is not necessary to have any affirmative acts, that by virtue of being a public employee, he has the right not to engage in political association.
JUSTICE BREYER- Well, that's just a restatement of Elrod. Would it be fair to the proposition that you're putting before the Court to say that you're asserting the right to be free from government inquiry into an oversight of your views? Would that be a fair statement?
It would be a fair statement, Justice Kennedy.
Because, look, do we — it sounds to me from the way you began your argument that we take this case on the assumption that if he had picked up the sign, that if he had been supporting the candidate for chief of police who was challenging the incumbent, if he had been engaged in the activity — that would be protected, he could not have been demoted. You want us to take the case on that proposition? Do we have to accept that proposition for you to prevail in this
case? MR. No, you do not have to accept that proposition. The proposition is just clearly that as a public employee, he has a right to either associate or non-associate, and he doesn't have to commit an affirmative act in support, in this case, of the mayor's opponent, which was Chief
Spagnuolo. The First Amendment talks about abridging freedom of speech, and I thought the case came to us on the proposition that he wasn't engaging in speech at all, that he was not engaging in association. He was not engaging in trying to convey a message. He was just picking up a sign for his mother. And if that's the basis on which the case comes to us, I'm not sure how he can say his freedom of speech has been abridged.
In this case, Mr. Chief Justice, The case comes to us with respect to association. With respect to speech, speech is governed by a different doctrine than association. There is no need to do a Pickering analysis in this case. JUSTICE
BREYER- He
wasn't
associating with anybody any more than he was speaking. He was doing neither one. He was associating with his mother, I suppose, in picking up the sign for her. But he was not expressing any political view. He was not associating with a political party. What case of ours vindicates the right that Justice Kennedy described to you and which you readily agreed with? What case of ours vindicates that?
Elrod would stand for that proposition. Elrod?
Elrod says you have a First Amendment right to favor a political party or not favor a political party, and you cannot be fired for doing so. That's not what happened here.
But he was not favoring a political
party. Exactly. He was not expressing any First Amendment view, whatever. I mean, he was fired for the wrong reason, but there's no constitutional right not to be fired for the wrong reason. If he was fired because his government employer thought he had committed a felony and he hadn't, He might have a cause of action under some statute, but there's no constitutional right not to be fired for the wrong reason. And that's what happened here.
There's a constitutional right, Justice Scalia, to be able to be free from patronage decisions and to be discharged or demoted on patronage grounds. And in Elrod
— Why do we say that? We never said that. Elrod and Branti are — Cases decided under the First Amendment. The First Amendment guarantees the right to freedom of speech and freedom of association.
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
What First Amendment right is the plaintiff claiming in Heffernan v. City of Paterson?
0:00–8:20
2
How does the Court’s Elrod and its progeny case law support the plaintiff’s claim?
8:20–14:10
3
Why does the mistaken perception of political activity matter for a First Amendment claim?
14:10–22:41
4
What role does New Jersey’s state civil‑rights statute play in the case?
22:41–30:42
5
How could the employer’s motive create a chilling effect on other public employees?
30:42–38:10
6
What is the difference between a broad policy ban and a one‑off employment action?
38:10–46:06
7
How do the parties use hypothetical scenarios to test the scope of the right?
46:06–52:04
8
What are the key takeaways and unresolved questions as the argument concludes?
52:04–59:56