The Liberty Justice Center (LJC) today announced it has filed an amicus brief with the U.S. Supreme Court, strongly advocating for the protection of First Amendment rights for mental health professionals in a pivotal case challenging Colorado’s Mental Health Practice Act.
The LJC’s brief supports licensed professional counselor Kaley Chiles, who argues that the state law unconstitutionally restricts therapists’ free speech, particularly concerning views on sexual orientation and gender identity.
The legal battle originated in 2019 when Kaley Chiles filed a lawsuit against Colorado’s Mental Health Practice Act.
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Chiles contends that the Act, which prohibits licensed mental health professionals from offering counseling if their expressed views on sexual orientation or gender identity are disapproved by the state, constitutes a direct infringement on therapists’ First Amendment rights by discriminating against speech based on its content and viewpoint.
After the U.S. Court of Appeals dismissed her initial lawsuit for the Tenth Circuit, Chiles appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, which granted her petition on March 10, 2025. The Liberty Justice Center previously filed an amicus brief in support of Chiles’s petition for the Court to hear the case.
In its latest amicus brief, filed on June 13, the Liberty Justice Center urged the Supreme Court to reverse the Tenth Circuit’s ruling. The organization argues that Colorado’s law is a clear violation of mental health professionals’ First Amendment rights.
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“By attempting to regulate therapists’ speech, Colorado’s Mental Health Practice Act explicitly and undeniably infringes on their First Amendment rights,” stated Reilly Stephens, Director of Amicus Practice at the Liberty Justice Center.
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