On October 7, 2025, the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Chiles v. Salazar,^[1]Steven D. Schwinn, Does Colorado’s Law That Prohibits Mental Health Professionals from Providing “Conversion Therapy” to Minors Violate Free Speech? (24-539), 53 PREVIEW U.S. SUP. CT. CAS. 16 (October … Continue reading a case that sits at the intersection of free speech, religious liberty, and state regulation of mental health treatment.

At issue is Colorado’s 2019 Minor Conversion Therapy Law (MCTL),^[2]Siobhan Nolan, Child Abuse in the Name of Free Speech: Against Protecting Conversion Therapy as Free Speech, 23 SEATTLE J. SOC. JUST. 427 (Spring 2025). This document can be found in HeinOnline’s Law Journal … Continue reading which prohibits licensed mental health professionals from attempting to change a minor’s sexual orientation or gender identity. Counselor Kaley Chiles, a practicing Christian who provides faith-based talk therapy, claims that the law infringes upon her First Amendment right to free speech as a licensed counselor. The state maintains that the law is a valid exercise of its authority to regulate professional practices and safeguard minors.

The Court’s decision could redefine how states regulate counseling, when that counseling involves deeply personal conversations about faith, sexuality, and identity.

Conversion therapy, also known as sexual orientation change efforts (SOCE), is any attempt to change a person’s sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression.^[3]Jen Rex, Protecting Florida’s LGBTQ+ Youth by Prohibiting the Use of Conversion Therapy, 51 STETSON L. REV. 497 (Summer 2022). This document can be found in HeinOnline’s Law Journal Library. These approaches gained attention in the mid-20th century, often involving talk therapy or behavioral conditioning.

Major medical and psychological organizations, including the American Psychiatric Association^[4]Marie-Amelie George, Expressive Ends: Understanding Conversion Therapy Bans, 17 DUKEMINIER AWARDS: BEST SEXUAL ORIENTATION aND GENDER IDENTITY LAW REVIEW 63 (2018).. This document can be … Continue reading and American Psychological Association (2009),^[5]Darius Lee, Conversion Therapy Bans: Enshrining a Contested View of Human Nature in Law, 33 SACLJ 483 (March 2021).. This document can be found in HeinOnline’s Law Journal Library. have issued public statements concluding that conversion therapy is not supported by scientific evidence and expressing concern about its potential effects, particularly for minors.

In response, states began enacting bans. California and New Jersey^[6]Julie Laemmle, California’s Conversion: A Ban on Minor Conversion Therapy and the Effect on Other States, 2 IND. J.L. & SOC. EQUAL. [xii] (2013). This document can be found in HeinOnline’s Law Journal … Continue reading were the first, in 2012 and 2013 respectively. Since then, more than 20 states and the District of Columbia have passed similar laws. While these laws differ in scope, most share a key feature: they apply only to licensed mental health professionals, not clergy or unlicensed counselors.

Courts across the country have reached differing conclusions on whether these laws restrict free speech or permissibly regulate professional practice. That division set the stage for Chiles v. Salazar to reach the Supreme Court.

Colorado’s MCTL defines conversion therapy as “any practice or treatment…that attempts or purports to change an individual’s sexual orientation or gender identity,”^[7]Steven D. Schwinn, Does Colorado’s Law That Prohibits Mental Health Professionals from Providing “Conversion Therapy” to Minors Violate Free Speech? (24-539), 53 PREVIEW U.S. SUP. CT. CAS. 16 (October … Continue reading while permitting therapy that supports “coping, social support, and identity exploration.” The state exempts those engaged in religious ministry.

Chiles, who offers Christian counseling in Colorado Springs, argues that the law prevents her from speaking freely with clients who wish to align their behavior with their faith. She uses only talk therapy^[8]Warren Geoffrey Tucker, It’s Not Called Conduct Therapy; Talk Therapy as a Protected Form of Speech under the First Amendment, 23 WM. & MARY BILL RTS. J. 885 (March 2015). This document can be found in … Continue reading with no medical or behavioral interventions and claims that her speech is her treatment.

The Tenth Circuit upheld the law, classifying it as a regulation of professional conduct rather than a restriction on speech. Now, the Supreme Court must determine whether laws that limit counseling practices also limit the words used in those sessions and, by extension, the constitutional right to free expression.

This case highlights a tension the Court has confronted before: when does professional advice become protected expression?

• In National Institute of Family and Life Advocates (NIFLA) v. Becerra (2018),^[9]1 (March 16, 2018)
  Facing the FACT Act: Abortion and Free Speech (Part I). This document can be found in HeinOnline’s U.S. Congressional Documents. the Court held that content-based regulations of professional speech generally trigger strict scrutiny under the First Amendment.
• Conversely, in Planned Parenthood v. Casey (1992),^[10]Vanessa Laird, Planned Parenthood v Casey: The Role of Stare Decisis, 57 MOD. L. REV. 461 (May 1994). This document can be found in HeinOnline’s Law Journal Library. the Court upheld laws requiring doctors to disclose certain information before performing abortions, treating those disclosures as professional conduct subject to regulation.

The outcome in Chiles will hinge on where the Court draws that line. Is talk therapy a form of expressive dialogue, or a regulated healthcare practice?

At the same time, the Court will hear two additional cases this 2025-2026 term: Little v. Hecox^[11]Rena M. Lindevaldsen, United States v. Skrmetti: The Supreme Court’s Opportunity to Protect Minors by Choosing Biological Reality over Gender Ideology, 19 LIBERTY U. L. REV. 565 (Spring 2025). This document can be found in … Continue reading and West Virginia v. B.P.J.^[12]Emma N. Diamanti, Transgender Panic in Higher Education: An Argument for the Expansion of Title IX, 23 CONN. PUB. INT. L.J. 62 (Spring-Summer 2024). This document can be found in HeinOnline’s Law Journal Library.. These cases address transgender participation in sports, along with South Carolina v. John Doe, which involves school restroom access.

Taken together, these cases reflect a term deeply engaged with how law, identity, and constitutional freedoms interact.

Lower courts across the country have reached differing conclusions on the constitutionality of conversion therapy bans.

The Third and Ninth Circuits^[13]Colin D. Sheehan, “The Best Path Forward”: The Constitutionality of Adult Conversion Therapy Bans, 21 RUTGERS J. L. & RELIGION 159 (2021). This document can be found in HeinOnline’s Law … Continue reading have upheld state laws restricting conversion therapy for minors, viewing them as permissible regulations of professional conduct intended to protect public health. In contrast, the Eleventh Circuit^[14]Logan Kline, Revitalizing the Ban on Conversion Therapy: An Affirmation of the Constitutionality of Conversion Therapy Bans, 90 U. CIN. L. REV. 623 (2021).. This document can be found in HeinOnline’s Law Journal Library. struck down similar ordinances in Florida, holding that such bans infringed on counselors’ free speech rights. This divide has left states uncertain about the limits of their authority to regulate talk-based therapy.

The Supreme Court’s ruling could determine how far states may go in regulating speech-based treatments, and whether professional ethics can justify restrictions on expression within the counseling relationship.

HeinOnline’s extensive collections provide a wealth of material to explore the legal, ethical, and psychological dimensions of conversion therapy. Researchers can examine:

• Preview of United States Supreme Court Cases: for background, argument analysis, and amicus coverage on current and past Supreme Court cases.
• LGBTQ+ Rights: for legislative histories, scholarly articles, and legal developments surrounding LGBTQ+ protections and conversion therapy bans.
• Religion and the Law: for insight into the intersection of religious freedom and professional regulation.
• Law Journal Library: for peer-reviewed scholarship addressing constitutional arguments, such as free speech, equal protection, and parental rights.

Search terms such as “conversion therapy for minors,” “sexual orientation change efforts,” or “professional speech regulation” will uncover decades of evolving jurisprudence and academic debate on these issues.

Readers interested in following this case as it moves through the Supreme Court can explore it in full detail within HeinOnline’s Preview of United States Supreme Court Cases database, published in partnership with the American Bar Association.

This database offers comprehensive coverage of cases before the Court, including background facts, issues presented, summaries of arguments, and analysis by leading legal scholars. It’s an essential resource for anyone tracking current constitutional debates, from free speech to religious liberty.