On October 4th, the Supreme Court began a new term, and with it comes a number of fresh cases for the justices to deliberate on. As the Court has begun to hear the first arguments, though, one case in particular stands out not only because of its potential impact on public-employee unions across the country, but also because of the repercussions it may have for freedom of speech and First Amendment rights.

Earlier this year, a ballot initiative was filed in Oregon to place a measure on the 2014 ballot to allow public sector union members to opt out of mandatory deduction of dues from their paychecks.