Breaking: The amicus brief that has been blowing up our Slack

Dear Pamela, As a legal nonprofit full of nerdy and tenacious lawyers, our Slack channel gets excited about an amicus brief. But this time, I–the Communications Director who loves plain but powerful words–got excited about an amicus brief. *I'm* the one who can't stop quoting it to people on our Slack channel. Because this one is a banger. Here's the case: A Tennessee law could criminalize someone for helping (or, in their words, "recruiting") a young person who wants an abortion. If the court allows this law to go into effect, the confidential legal advice we provide all the time to young people in Tennessee would be chilled. Essentially, young people–and only young people–would be cut off from getting confidential legal advice. This is the only kind of legal advice that truly protects any client and ensures they get the help they need. As we wrote in our amicus brief to the Sixth Circuit: "Attorney-client privilege is a public good that is fundamental to the facilitation of justice." People of all ages in Tennessee–and across the country–are understandably confused about the laws in their state when they need to get an abortion. Indeed, many of those laws are explicitly designed to confuse people. That's why our Repro Legal Helpline exists. So it's no wonder that Tennessee is one of the top ten states where our Repro Legal Helpline receives calls. They need access to confidential and judgement free legal advice to be able to navigate the chaotic laws in their state. You can help support this access with a donation to If/When/How today. Ahem, again, as we said in our amicus brief: "By excluding young Tennesseans from seeking legal advice about some of their rights, but not others, the recruiting provision eviscerates the attorney-client privilege. It creates an absurd guessing game." Although our primary goal is to always make the law more accessible, amicus briefs have to be written for a judge and often my job is to translate it out of legalese. But the legal case here is so clear, I don't need to translate what our lawyers put in our brief: "Attorneys' ability to counsel their clients is not only necessary for people to understand and enforce their legal rights but is essential to the rule of the law and the functioning of our constitutional system." This is not the first time we've provided evidence to the court that a ban on abortion support violates the first amendment. And when they strike the law down, it won't be the first time the courts have agreed with us. In Idaho, the Ninth Circuit threw out that state's ban on abortion support. The court recognized that attorney-client privilege is essential–and named If/When/How and the legal services we provide on our Repro Legal Helpline as the kind of essential support that the First Amendment protects. As our communications director, I love that it is my job to boast about our work all day to anyone who will listen–literally anyone. Our Helpline is the only service of its kind in this country, and it's an incredible honor to see firsthand how giving people access to free and confidential legal services changes both their lives and the laws beyond. Thank you for supporting this crucial work, and letting me gush about an amicus brief. In solidarity, Jen Girdish Communications Director If/When/How P.S. If you also feel inspired to protect attorney-client privilege and young people's legal rights, can you donate $5 to support our Helpline's work? DONATE TO REPRO HELPLINE Paid for by Progress America, a project of Strategy & Hustle   Sent via ActionNetwork.org. To update your email address, change your name or address, or to stop receiving emails from Progress America, please click here.