Chiles v. Salazar Moot Court
Description
In 2019, Colorado enacted a law banning licensed mental health professionals from engaging in "conversion therapy" with minors, defined as efforts to change a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity. Kaley Chiles, a licensed counselor and practicing Christian, challenged the law, arguing that it prevents her from providing counseling consistent with her religious beliefs. She works with clients who want to discuss issues that, she says, “implicate Christian values about human sexuality and the treatment of their own body.” Chiles contends that the Colorado law violates her First Amendment rights to free speech and to freely exercise her religion. The Tenth Circuit rejected her claim, ruling that the law regulates professional conduct, not speech, and is therefore subject to rational basis review, which it passes.
Materials for Panel
Academic Perspectives
Pro-Chiles
- Expressive Ends: Understanding Conversion Therapy Bans - Marie-Amélie George, Alabama Law Review
- Conversion Therapy Bans: Enshrining a Contested View of Human Nature in Law - Darius Lee, Singapore Academy of Law Journal
Pro-Salazar
- Revitalizing the Ban on Conversion Therapy: An Affirmation of the Constitutionality of Conversion Therapy Bans Constitutionality of Conversion Therapy Bans - Logan Kline, University of Cincinnati Law Review
- Why Prohibitions on Conversion Therapy for Children Survive Strict Scrutiny - Samuel G. Bernstein, Boston College Law Review
News Articles
- SCOTUS To Consider Whether Government Can Strangle Therapists’ Speech - Logan Washburn, The Federalist
- The Moral and Financial Harm of Conversion Therapy: Why Chiles v. Salazar Matters for All of Us - Interfaith Alliance
- Supreme Court Faces Decision on LGBTQ+ Conversion Therapy - Andrew Stanton, Newsweek
- Supreme Court takes up challenge to Colorado ban on “conversion therapy” - Amy Howe, SCOTUSblog
- Supreme Court to Hear Challenge to Law Banning Conversion Therapy - Adam Liptak, New York Times
Case Documents
- SCOTUSblog Case File with All Documents, Including All Amici
- Petition for Writ of Certiorari by Chiles, Response Brief, Reply Brief
Amici Briefs
Pro-Chiles
- Brief Amicus Curiae of Pacific Legal Foundation in Support of Petitioner
- Brief for the United States as Amicus Curiae Supporting Petitioner
Pro-Salazar