The Dispute Index

David Souter

David Souter served as an associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court from 1990 to 2009. He previously served on federal and New Hampshire state courts and as New Hampshire attorney general.

Website (opens in a new tab)

What DI has documented

DI has documented statements by David Souter on Free Speech, Government Ethics, and Labor Policy. Read the quotations, original sources and related cases below.

Topics in this coverage

Statements by David Souter

David Souter

Role at the time: Supreme Court justice, dissenting

Condemned

Response to this claim

The First Amendment does not protect public employees' duty-related statements from employer discipline.

“But why do the majority’s concerns, which we all share, require categorical exclusion of First Amendment protection against any official retaliation for things said on the job?”
Read the original text (opens in a new tab)Supreme Court opinions in Garcetti v. Ceballos547 U.S. 410; majority and Souter dissent
Why we used this label

The subject is categorical exclusion of duty-related speech. Souter rejects that exclusion and favors balancing for some warnings. Acknowledging management interests does not make him a supporter of the categorical rule.

Read statementGarcetti: Kennedy and Souter split over public employees' duty-related speech

A participant is a subject of the case. A speaker has a statement documented in it. A commentator has an opinion or editorial documented in it.