Walters v. Conant

1 Citing case

  1. Behar v. Pennsylvania Department of Transportation

    791 F. Supp. 2d 383 (M.D. Pa. 2011)   Cited 117 times
    Finding that "the stigma associated with mental health treatment presents an obstacle to a challenge of the PennDOT regulation by patients themselves."

    Plaintiff, maintains that a physician-patient relationship has protection under the First Amendment and state action may be enjoined where it places barriers to the full disclosure of all facts needed between these two parties. See Conant v. Walters, 309 F.3d 629 (9th Cir.2002), cert. denied, Walters v. Conant, 540 U.S. 946, 124 S.Ct. 387, 157 L.Ed.2d 276 (2003) (state regulation that threatened to punish physicians who spoke to their patients about the use of medical marijuana struck at core of First Amendment because recommendation itself did not constitute illegal conduct). As Defendants observe, there are two types of associations protected by the Constitution: expressive and intimate.