Full opinion text
Opinion BROUSSARD, J. This suit attacks the use of dues collected by the State Bar of California to finance lobbying, amicus curiae briefs and other activities, including election campaign activities, politically or ideologically objectionable to plaintiffs, Upon analysis of the constitutional status and legislative structure of the State Bar, we conclude that the State Bar may use dues to finance any activity, except election campaigning, which is germane to its statutory mission to promote “the improvement of the administration of justice.” (Bus. & Prof. Code, § 6031, subd. (a).) Acting pursuant to its statutory authority, the State Bar for many years has lobbied the Legislature and other governmental agencies, filed amicus curiae briefs in pending cases, held an annual conference of delegates at which issues of current interest are debated and resolutions approved, and engaged in a variety of education programs. In 1982 the State Bar publicized the inaugural speech by its new president, Anthony Murray, in which he addressed the confirmation of appellate justices in the impending election. The State Bar subsequently disseminated material on that subject to local bar associations and other organizations. All of these activities were financed primarily from membership dues, as are all bar activities except the bar examination. The State Bar levies membership dues pursuant to statutory authority (§ 6140) subject to a maximum limit set annually by the Legislature. Every attorney engaged in active practice in California is required to be a member of the bar (§§ 6125-6126) and to pay the dues assessed; a refusal to pay results in the suspension of membership (§ 6143), which deprives the attorney of the right to practice law in California (§ 6225). Plaintiffs contend that the activities in question constitute the advancement of political and ideological causes, and cannot constitutionally be financed from mandatory dues. This is an issue of first impression in this state. Courts of some other jurisdictions have limited the use of bar dues, but there is no consensus concerning those limits. When we set out to analyze the issue, we are confronted immediately with two competing paradigms. The State Bar argues that we should view it as a government agency, which may use revenues from any source for any purpose within the scope of its authority. Plaintiffs, on the other hand, argue that we should view the bar as a labor union or private association whose right to use dues money is restricted by constitutional principles. We believe the governmental agency paradigm more closely fits the case of the California State Bar. Accordingly, we conclude the bar may use dues to finance all activities germane to its statutory purpose, a phrase which we construe broadly to permit the bar to comment generally upon proposed legislation or pending litigation. By analogy to governmental agencies, however, the bar may not engage in election campaigns; thus certain of the activities in connection with the 1982 election exceeded its statutory power. I. Proceedings in This Action. Plaintiffs, 21 members of the State Bar, filed suit against the bar and its Board of Governors. Their complaint alleged that “[t]he State Bar of California, by and through its Board of Governors, has expended and will continue to expend substantial portions of the revenues derived from . . . mandatory dues payments to advance political and ideological causes, including, but not limited to: “a. lobbying the California State Legislature on various matters . . . ; “b. submitting briefs amicus curiae in various cases . . . ; “c. financing meetings of the Conference of Delegates at which political and ideological causes are advanced . . . ; “d. publicizing the political and ideological speeches of its president, Anthony M. Murray . . . ; “e. financing a so-called ‘public information’ project designed to disseminate to the general public a particular ideology regarding judicial retention elections. . . .” Plaintiffs then alleged that they do not subscribe to many of the political and ideological causes promoted by the bar, and object to the use of mandatory dues to advance any of the political and ideological views of the Board of Governors or the conference of delegates. They sought a declaration that defendants have violated their constitutional rights, an injunction restraining defendants from using bar dues or the name of the State Bar to advance political and ideological causes or beliefs, and an injunction compelling defendants to reimburse the bar for all funds expended for political and ideological purposes since September 12, 1982. Plaintiffs attached a partial list of the bills which the bar has lobbied for or against, of the cases in which it has appeared as amicus curiae, and of resolutions adopted by the conference of delegates. They also attached a copy of Anthony Murray’s inaugural address when he became president of the bar on September 12, 1982, a press release describing that address, and a later press release dated October 8. (Although the complaint referred to “speeches,” the September 12 speech is apparently the only one at issue.) Finally, plaintiffs attached a copy of an educational packet entitled “The Case for an Independent Judiciary” distributed by the bar in October of 1982. The packet included a copy of Murray’s inaugural address, a resolution of the Board of Governors, a sample speech, fact sheets on crime and conviction rates, judicial retention elections, and judicial performance, and suggestions for speech fora and media coverage. Defendants answered, admitting that they have used dues to finance all of the described activities, but maintaining that such expenditures did not violate plaintiffs’ rights. Defendants then moved for summary judgment or adjudication of issues. In support, they submitted declarations which described the bar’s legislative and amicus curiae program and asserted that the bar usually acted only in matters which affect the bar itself, the attorney-client relationship, or the administration of justice. In lobbying or filing amicus curiae briefs the bar’s representatives purport to act only on behalf of the State Bar, and not to represent the views of each of its members. Plaintiffs filed a cross-motion for summary judgment, but submitted no declarations. The trial court granted summary judgment for defendants, finding that the State Bar was a governmental agency authorized to do the acts in question. The court further found that the plaintiffs had failed to show that the individual defendants acted without due care or in bad faith. The Court of Appeal reversed. The majority opinion by Justice Sparks divided State Bar activities into two categories. The first, regulatory activities, included the testing and admission of bar applicants and the disciplining of members. These activities, the Court of Appeal said, were akin to those of a governmental agency. The bar’s administration-of-justice function—a function which included all the activities here challenged—it found akin to the actions of a labor union. Such action it held, could be financed from mandatory dues only if the particular action in question served a state interest important enough to overcome the interference with dissenters’ First Amendment rights. Each lobbying activity, it said, and each amicus curiae brief, would have to be examined, with the State Bar bearing the burden to justify its action. The Court of Appeal further held that the Murray speech and educational packet constituted election campaigning unauthorized by statute. It further found that the Board of Governors’ approval of such unauthorized expenditures may subject its members to personal liability, and raised a triable issue concerning their good faith and exercise of due care. We granted the defendants’ petition for review. II. Structure and Function of the State Bar * Although the parties submitted much documentation in support of and in opposition to the respective motions, there is no real factual dispute about the State Bar and its activities. As we recently recounted, “[i]n 1927, the Legislature adopted the State Bar Act (Bus. & Prof. Code, § 6000 et seq.) establishing ‘what is known as an “integrated” bar, i.e., an organization of members of the legal profession of the state with a large measure of self-government, performing such functions as examining applicants for admission, formulating rules of professional conduct, disciplining members for misconduct, preventing unlawful practice of the law, and engaging in study and recommendation of changes in procedural law and improvement of the administration of justice.’ (1 Witkin, Cal. Procedure (1970 ed.) Attorneys, § 157, p. 168.)” (Saleeby v. State Bar (1985) 39 Cal.3d 547, 557 [216 Cal.Rptr. 367, 702 P.2d 525].)Thus, the State Bar is authorized to establish an examining committee to “examine all applicants for admission to practice law” and thereafter to “certify to the Supreme Court for admission those applicants who fulfill the requirements. . . .” (§ 6046, subds. (a), (c).) Under the board’s auspices, local administrative committees may investigate complaints about the conduct of members and may thereafter forward reports and recommendations to the board for action. (§ 6043, subds. (a), (c).) After a hearing, the board “has the power to recommend to the Supreme Court the disbarment or suspension from practice of members or to discipline them by reproval, public or private, with such recommendation.” (§ 6078.) “In those two areas, the bar’s role has consistently been articulated as that of an administrative assistant to or adjunct of [the Supreme Court], which nonetheless retains its inherent judicial authority to disbar or suspend attorneys. In the area of admission to practice, an applicant is admitted only by order of the Supreme Court which, upon certification by the bar’s examining committee that the applicant fulfills the admission requirements, ‘may admit such applicant as an attorney at law in all the courts of this State. . . .’” (Saleeby, supra, at p. 557, citations omitted.) In addition to those duties, the State Bar enforces the law relating to the unlawful practice of law and illegal solicitation (§§ 6030, 6125-6131, 6150-6154), administers an arbitration system for fee disputes (§§ 6200-6206), maintains a client security fund (§ 6140.5) and engages in other similar matters relating to the legal profession. In addition to these powers, the board is empowered to “aid in all matters pertaining to the advancement of the science of jurisprudence or to the improvement of the administration of justice. . . .” (§ 6031, subd. (a).) This has been called the “laudable general purpose of the [State Bar] act.” (Herron v. The State Bar (1931) 212 Cal. 196, 199 [298 P. 474].) The bar’s general counsel has described this provision as “the springboard for State Bar activities.” (Hearing on Use of Mandatory State Bar Dues, Assem. Com. on Judiciary (Sept. 17, 1980) letter of Herbert M. Rosenthal, p. 111.) Some of the bar’s actions undertaken pursuant to this section have been statutorily delineated; most have not. For example, the State Bar is mandated by statute to cooperate with and give assistance to the Commission on Judicial Performance (Gov. Code, § 68725), to assist the Law Revision Commission (Gov. Code, § 8287), and to evaluate the judicial qualifications of gubernatorial nominees for appointment to courts of record. (Gov. Code, § 12011.5.) In aid of all of its powers, the State Bar is authorized to do all acts “necessary or expedient for the administration of its affairs and the attainment of its purposes.” (§ 6001, subd. (g).) To carry out its functions, the State Bar is governed by a Board of Governors of 22 members, 16 of whom are members of the State Bar and 6 of whom are nonattorneys appointed by the Governor of the state with approval of the Senate. (§§ 6010, 6011, 6013.5.) Fifteen of the attorney members of the board are elected by the members of the State Bar from geographical areas established by the Legislature, and one member is elected by the board of directors of the California Young Lawyers Association. (§§ 6012, 6013, 6013.4.) The board elects the officers of the State Bar. (§§ 6021-6024.) The State Bar has established a conference of delegates, which consists of representatives of voluntary local and special bar associations. The conference meets once a year to consider proposals, many of which are intended for legislative action. The board has also established committees or sections open to members of the bar interested in particular areas of the law and which advise the board in those areas. The bar employs attorneys who represent it in disciplinary actions and other litigation, including the present case. On direction of the Board of Governors, the attorneys file briefs amicus curiae in litigation affecting the bar or its members. The bar also employs lobbyists to present the position of the board to the Legislature and state agencies. III. The State Bar, for the Purpose of Expenditure of Dues, Is Analogous to a Governmental Agency. The issue we face today came before the United States Supreme Court in Lathrop v. Donohue (1961) 367 U.S. 820 [6 L.Ed.2d 1191, 81 S.Ct. 1826]. Plaintiffs in that case challenged the constitutionality of the Wisconsin integrated bar. Relying on case upholding the constitutionality of legislation authorizing the union shop (Machinists v. Street (1961) 367 U.S. 740 [6 L.Ed.2d 1141, 1165, 81 S.Ct. 1784]; Railway Employes’ Dept. v. Hanson (1956) 351 U.S. 225 [100 L.Ed. 1112, 76 S.Ct. 714]), all justices agreed that compulsory membership in the bar was constitutional. (See Levine v. Heffernan (7th Cir. 1988) 864 F.2d 457.) Justice Brennan, writing for four justices, declined to reach questions concerning the use of mandatory dues because the plaintiffs had not objected to any specific expenditure. The remaining five justices agreed that the issue of use of dues was properly before the court, but disagreed on the result. Justice Harlan, joined by Justice Frankfurter, treated the bar association as analogous to a governmental agency and dues as analogous to license fees, and found no constitutional infirmity in the use of dues for authorized purposes. (See Lathrop, supra, 367 U.S. at pp. 864-865 [6 L.Ed.2d at pp. 1217-1218].) The member, he points out, is not required affirmatively to profess or assent to any belief, and the bar, in its lobbying activities, did not claim to present the views of all of its members. (See id. at pp. 860-861 [6 L.Ed.2d at p. 1215].) Justice Whittaker asserted briefly that practicing law was a special privilege, which could be conditioned on payment of bar dues. Justices Douglas and Black dissented, referring to their opinions in Machinists v. Street, supra, 367 U.S. 740, where they said that the use of union dues to finance political activities violated the members’ First Amendment rights. Thus as pointed out in a subsequent case, all Lathrop decided was that the constitutional issues concerning use of bar dues should be decided; it did not decide those issues. (Abood v. Detroit Board of Education (1977) 431 U.S. 209, 233, fn. 29 [52 L.Ed.2d 261, 233, 97 S.Ct. 1782].) Consequently the treatment of bar dues remains an unsettled question. We recognize certain similarities between the bar and a labor union which would support imposing upon the bar those restrictions which limit union expenditures. The bar is an association composed of members of a particular profession. It is governed by a board, the majority of whom are elected by the members. It holds annual meetings. Although much of its activity is done to promote the public interest, it also regularly acts on behalf of the special interest of its members. The California Constitution, statutes, and judicial decisions, however, appear to envision the bar as a governmental agency. The State Bar Act of 1927, codified in sections 6000-6087, provides in section 6001 that “[t]he State Bar of California is a public corporation.” This declaration attained constitutional status with the enactment in 1966 of article VI, section 9 of the state Constitution, which asserts that “[t]he State Bar of California is a public corporation. Every person admitted and licensed to practice law in this State is and shall be a member of the State Bar except while holding office as a judge of a court of record.” What is a “public corporation”? When the State Bar Act was enacted in 1927, this term was defined by a statute, since repealed: a public corporation is one “formed or organized for the government of a portion of the state.” (Former Civ. Code, § 284.) Construing that statute, a 1917 decision said that “[p]ublic corporations . . . are those corporations formed for political and governmental purposes and vested with political and governmental powers.” (Bettencourt v. Industrial Acc. Com. (1917) 175 Cal. 559, 561 [166 P. 323].) In State Bar of California v. Superior Court (1929) 207 Cal. 323 [278 P. 432], it was contended that the State Bar could not be a public corporation because it was not created to govern “a portion of the state,” and that the State Bar Act was thus an unconstitutional attempt to create a private corporation. The court responded that the statute defining a public corporation could not limit the Legislature from enacting subsequent statutes creating public corporations for purposes other than the government of a portion of the state. It added that the Legislature has frequently created public corporations which did not have the function of governing a portion of the state, citing examples of reclamation districts, levee districts, and irrigation districts. It was further argued in State Bar of California v. Superior Court, supra, 207 Cal. 323 that the State Bar must be considered a private corporation in view of its membership, functions, purpose, and its independence from public regulation and control. The court responded that the regulation of the practice of law is within the police power of the state—a close issue in 1929, but not today—and referred to legislative and judicial regulation as sufficient to classify the bar as a public corporation. This decision does not answer the question whether a public corporation is necessarily a governmental agency. But it is significant that all other public corporations in California—water districts, school districts, reclamation districts, etc.—are clearly considered governmental entities. Conversely, no labor union or professional association is classified as a public corporation. Apart from its denomination as a public corporation, other aspects of the bar show its governmental nature. The Board of Governors includes six public members appointed by the Governor, who are not members of the bar. (§ 6013.5.) The presence of “consumer representatives” on state regulatory boards is a common phenomenon, but no law permits the Governor to appoint nonmembers as officers of a labor union or private association. Section 6008 declares that “[a]ll property of the State Bar is hereby declared to be held for essential public and governmental purposes” and is exempt from taxation. Section 6026.5 requires public meetings; a similar requirement applies to governmental regulatory boards but not to unions or private associations. Section 6001, subdivision (g) states that “[n]o law of this State restricting, or prescribing a mode of procedure for the exercise of powers of state public bodies or state agencies . . . shall be applicable to the State Bar, unless the Legislature expressly so declares”—an unnecessary enactment unless laws governing the exercise of powers of state public bodies or state agencies would otherwise apply to the bar. In Chronicle Pub. Co. v. Superior Court (1960) 54 Cal.2d 548 [7 Cal.Rptr. 109, 354 P.2d 637] we said that this last provision demonstrates “[t]hat the Legislature considered the State Bar as at least akin to a state public body or agency” (p. 565), and held that officers of the bar could claim the confidential communication privilege given public officers under former Code of Civil Procedure section 1881. A later decision, Engel v. McClosky (1979) 92 Cal.App.3d 870 [155 Cal.Rptr. 284], applied the tort claims act (Gov. Code, § 810 et seq.) to the State Bar. A recent amendment to section 6031 further indicates that the Legislature views the bar as a governmental agency. Subdivision (b), added by the amendment, provides that “the board [of governors] shall not conduct or participate in, or authorize any committee, agency, employee, or commission of the State Bar to conduct or participate in any evaluation, review, or report on the qualifications, integrity, diligence, or judicial ability of any specific justice [of an appellate court] . . . without prior review and statutory authorization by the Legislature.” If the State Bar is considered a private association, the constitutionality of this statute is suspect. It is a content-defined prohibition of a particular form of political speech by a named organization, imposed, apparently, because the Legislature objected to bar attempts to influence the voters. It would be difficult to justify a prohibition on political speech by a private association, especially one enacted because the speaker is thought too knowledgeable and influential with the voters. If the bar is thought of as a governmental agency, on the other hand, section 6031, subdivision (b), merely defines the scope of authority of the agency, and raises no constitutional question. As we noted earlier, the Court of Appeal divided the State Bar’s function into two parts. It held that in regulating the admission of members to the bar, and disciplining current members, the bar performed a governmental function, but in all other activities it was analogous to a private association. We reject this holding on two grounds. The first is simply that the reason we view the bar as analogous to a governmental agency is not only that it performs a governmental function, but that the state Constitution, statutes, and court decisions treat it as a governmental agency. Those enactments and decisions do not differentiate according to the specific activity performed by the bar. Thus the bar is a public corporation, whether it is disciplining members or filing amicus curiae briefs; it is exempt from taxation and immune from tort liability both when examining applicants for admission and when lobbying the Legislature. Its stature under the California Constitution, its structure, and its government are the same for all its functions. We conclude that however classified, it must be regarded as a single entity. Second, the Court of Appeal’s dichotomy, viewing lobbying and amicus curiae activity as that of a private association, would frustrate the legislative purpose underlying the bar’s authority to promote the administration of justice. Under the Court of Appeal’s view, whenever the bar proposed to advise the Legislature or the courts of its views on a matter, it would first have to engage in the three-step analysis set out in Ellis v. Railway Clerks (1984) 466 U.S. 435 [80 L.Ed.2d 428, 104 S.Ct. 1883], The bar must first determine whether the activity is germane to the purpose for which the bar has compulsory membership. Next, if the activity is germane, it must decide whether it inflicts an infringement of the dissenters’ First Amendment rights beyond that inflicted by compulsory membership alone. Finally, if there is an infringement of First Amendment rights, it must determine whether there is a state interest sufficient to justify that infringement. Such a procedure would be an extraordinary burden. Hundreds of bills come before each legislative session; cases affecting the administration of justice arise frequently. Bar action, to be effective, must take place before the legislative session ends or the case is submitted. The bar has neither time nor money to undertake a bill-by-bill, case-by-case Ellis analysis, nor can it accept the risk of litigation every time it decides to lobby a bill or brief a case. Thus the likely result of the Court of Appeal’s approach would be to deter the bar from conducting any lobbying or filing any amicus curiae briefs. If those activities promote the administration of justice by providing the Legislature and the courts with expert legal assistance, as we believe, an approach which would deter all lobbying and amicus curiae activity would frustrate the state interest underlying the establishment of an integrated bar. Furthermore, the one area where the Legislature has indicated displeasure with the bar’s activity concerns election campaigning. Yet if the bar is viewed as a private association, it would have a constitutional right to participate fully in political campaigns. (See Abood v. Detroit Board of Education, supra, 431 U.S. 209, 235-236 [52 L.Ed.2d 261, 284-285]; cf. Buckley v. Valeo (1976) 424 U.S. 1 [46 L.Ed.2d 659, 96 S.Ct. 612].) No explicit authorization would be necessary; any prohibition on such activity, such as section 6031, subdivision (b), would be unconstitutional. Again, such a result would seem inconsistent with legislative intent. We recognize that most of the cases from other jurisdictions which have addressed the subject of integrated bar dues have applied the labor union analogy to the bar. (Gibson v. The Florida Bar (11th Cir. 1986) 798 F.2d 1564; Schneider v. Colegio de Abogados de Puerto Rico (D.P.R. 1983) 565 F.Supp. 963, revd. in part in Romany v. Cologio de Abogados de P.R. (1st Cir. 1984) 742 F.2d 32, on remand Schneider v. Colegio de Abogados de Puerto Rico (D.P.R. 1988) 682 F.Supp. 674; Arrow v. Dow (D.N.M. 1982) 544 F.Supp. 458 [N.M. Bar]; The Florida Bar v. Kennedy (Fla. 1983) 439 So.2d 213; Falk I, supra, 305 N.W.2d 201; Falk II, supra, 342 N.W.2d 504; Reynolds v. State Bar of Montana (Mont. 1983) 660 P.2d 581 [40 A.L.R.4th 669].) None of the bar associations involved in those cases, however, rest upon a constitutional and statutory structure comparable to that of the California State Bar. None involves an extensive degree of legislative involvement and regulation. Consequently, while we are uncertain whether the courts have correctly described the bar associations at issue in the cited cases we remain confident that the California State Bar is best described as analogous to a governmental agency. IV. The Consequences of Viewing the State Bar as a Governmental Agency. If the bar is considered a governmental agency, then the distinction between revenue derived from mandatory dues and revenue from other sources is immaterial. A governmental agency may use unrestricted revenue, whether derived from taxes, dues, fees, tolls, tuition, donation, or other sources, for any purposes within its authority. Two Court of Appeal decisions illustrate the point. In Erzinger v. Regents of University of California (1982) 137 Cal.App.3d 389 [187 Cal.Rptr. 164], certiorari denied, 462 U.S. 1133 [77 L.Ed.2d 1368, 103 S.Ct. 3113], students at the University of California objected that the compulsory student registration fees included a fee for health services which included abortions. The Court of Appeal, noting that the Board of Regents is a governmental agency, treated the fee as equivalent to a tax, and held that one could not refuse to pay a tax because of ideological or religious objections to the use of the money. In Miller v. California Com. on Status of Women (1984) 151 Cal.App.3d 693 [198 Cal.Rptr. 877], appeal dismissed, 469 U.S. 806 [83 L.Ed.2d 15, 105 S.Ct. 64], plaintiffs attacked the commission’s expenditures incurred in lobbying for the enactment of the equal rights amendment. The Legislature responded by enacting Government Code section 8246, which expressly authorized such lobbying. The Court of Appeal found the statute controlling. Rejecting the claim that commission lobbying infringed the rights of dissenters, it wrote that the claim failed to distinguish between the government’s addition of its own voice and its silencing of others. “ ‘That government must regulate expressive activity with an even hand if it regulates such activity at all does not mean that government must be ideologically “neutral.” ’ ” (P. 700, quoting Tribe, American Constitutional Law (1978) p. 588.) Government may not compel citizens to express a particular viewpoint, nor delegate to nongovernmental entities the power to extract funds to support political and ideological activity not directly related to the entity’s purpose. (Ibid., citing Abood v. Detroit Board of Education, supra, 431 U.S. 209.) “‘But none of this means that government cannot add its own voice to the many that it must tolerate, provided it does not drown out private communication.’ ” (Ibid., quoting Tribe, op. cit. supra, p. 590.) “If the government. . . cannot appoint a commission to speak on the topic [of the status of women] without implicating plaintiffs’ First Amendment rights it may not address any other ‘controversial’ topics. If the government cannot address controversial topics it cannot govern.” (P. 701.) We conclude that the State Bar, considered as a government agency, may use dues for any purpose within the scope of its statutory authority. The concurring and dissenting opinion disputes this conclusion, arguing that even if the bar is a governmental agency its use of dues should be subject to restrictions hitherto imposed only on labor unions and other private associations. But no precedent supports the imposition of such restrictions on a governmental agency. Moreover, as we have previously explained (ante, pp. 1165-1166), applying the labor union test to the bar would impose upon the bar the massive burden of analyzing all proposed activities under vague and uncertain standards designed for organizations of quite different purpose and structure, and would probably discourage the bar from carrying out its statutory functions. Having decided that the bar may use dues for any authorized purpose, we next inquire into the scope of its authority. As previously noted, section 6031, subdivision (a) authorizes the bar to “aid in all matters pertaining to the advancement of the science of jurisprudence or to the improvement of the administration of justice.” In the context of lobbying and amicus curiae activities, this language should be read broadly. Laws are the business of lawyers. The drafting of a proposed law, the understanding of the relationship between that law and existing legislation, and the appreciation of the practical impact of the proposed legislation are matters which often require expert legal knowledge and judgment. Whatever the subject of the proposed law, it is likely that among the members of the State Bar are some with the needed expertise, whose collective advice can lead to significant improvements in the legislative proposal. “The state has a valid interest in drawing upon [lawyers’] training and experience in order to promote improvements in the administration of justice and to advance jurisprudence. The better attuned the legal machinery is to the public’s needs of health, safety, and welfare, the better the state will be able to perform its job of protecting and serving the public. The input and feedback on proposed legislation and court rules is invaluable to the state in fine-tuning its legislative and judicial systems.” (Falk I, supra, 305 N.W. 201, 231-232 (opn. of Williams, J.) fns. omitted.) Thus we do not distinguish between proposed legislation of substantive character and that which aims only at procedural changes. Substantive legislation has procedural effects, as, for example, when a change in tort law affects the number of cases settled and the number going to trial. And even if the proposed bill seems at first glance to relate entirely to substantive matters unrelated to the practice of law, the advice of expert practitioners could still be crucial; an example might be a bill concerning community property which has consequences, unforeseen by its author, upon estate planning or federal tax liability. We conclude that a bill-by-bill, case-by-case, review of bar lobbying and amicus curiae briefs is unnecessary and unworkable. We do not impose such scrutiny on lobbying and litigating by other governmental agencies. The Legislature is well aware of the bar’s activities, and that the bar’s authority for those activities derives from section 6031. Knowing these matters, the Legislature has annually approved bar dues, some of which go to support lobbying and amicus curiae briefs, and has amended section 6031 to prohibit one specific activity—the rating of appellate judges. We infer that the Legislature essentially approves a broad construction of the statute which would permit the bar’s existing activities. Holding a conference of delegates also falls within the bar’s authority. (Cf. Ellis v. Railway Clerks, supra, 466 U.S. 435, 448, 455-456 [80 L.Ed.2d 428, 446-447] (union conventions).) Plaintiffs, however, assert that some of the resolutions debated and passed by the conference fall beyond the boundary. The examples they cite, however, do not support this assertion; all but one relate to proposed changes in California law and that one relates to federal court jurisdiction, a subject which affects the practice of law in California. The bar’s actions in connection with the 1982 election present a different issue. We have no doubt that the bar’s actions related to the administration of justice. Indeed few matters bear as directly upon the administration of justice as the standards for the appointment and retention of judges. In Stanson v. Mott, supra, 17 Cal.3d 206, however, we set out a special rule limiting state agency participation in election campaigns. We there stated that absent “clear and explicit legislative authorization, a public agency may not expend public funds to promote a partisan position in an election campaign.” (17 Cal.3d at pp. 209-210.) Informational or education expenditures, on the other hand, require no such explicit authorization, for an agency has “implicit power to make ‘reasonable expenditures for the purpose of giving voters relevant facts to aid them in reaching an informed judgment. . . .’” (P. 220, quoting Citizens to Protect Pub. Funds v. Board of Education (1953) 13 N.J. 172 [98 A.2d 673, 676].) We recognized that “[frequently . . . the line between unauthorized campaign expenditures and authorized informational activities is not so clear. ... In such cases, the determination of the propriety or impropriety of the expenditure depends upon a careful consideration of such factors as the style, tenor and timing of the publication; no hard and fast rule governs every case.” (17 Cal.3d at p. 222, fn. omitted.) The present case is one of those we anticipated in Stanson v. Mott, supra, 17 Cal.3d 206. Anthony Murray’s inaugural speech was delivered about three months before the 1982 election, and clearly referred to that election. (The speech itself, of course, cost the State Bar nothing; the issue concerns its being publicized through press release and educational materials.) Some of its language is quite strident; he denounces the “idiotic cries of. . . self-appointed vigilantes . . . [and] unscrupulous politicians.” Some portions of the speech are restrained and educational in tone: he describes the history of the concept of judicial independence from the failed impeachment of Justice Samuel Chase to the present day and the role and philosophy of the bar, and presents statistics concerning this court’s review of criminal cases. The speech did not mention any justice by name, or urge the retention of any or all of the justices. The bar’s subsequent press release simply describes the speech, highlighting Murray’s assertion that “the only legitimate basis for refusing to retain or for recalling a justice is a showing of incapacity or misconduct in office.” The educational packet, sent to local bar associations and other interested groups, contained Murray’s speech, a sample speech entitled “The Case for an Independent Judiciary” (a quite restrained and philosophical exposition), sample letters to organizations which might provide a speech forum, and a sample press release. It also included fact sheets on crime and conviction rates, judicial selection and retention, and judicial performance and removal criteria. It concluded with quotations concerning judicial independence from Hamilton, Madison, Jefferson, and others. The bar may properly act to promote the independence of the judiciary; such conduct falls clearly within its statutory charge to advance the science of jurisprudence and improve the administration of justice. In the present case, however, the nature and timing of the 1982 publication (see Stanson v. Mott, supra, 17 Cal.3d 206, 222), indicate that it is a form of prohibited election campaigning. The material was distributed approximately one month before an election in which six justices of this court came before the voters for confirmation. It is the kind of material which a state election committee distributes to local committees to aid them in the campaign. Its style and tenor is appropriate to that end; it is basically informative and factual, but without claim of impartiality, and includes such practical tools as a form letter to groups which might host a speaker. While intended to educate the reader because its authors believed an informed campaigner would be a more effective campaigner, its primary purpose, we believe, was to assist in the election campaign on behalf of the justices. We conclude that in preparing and distributing this material, the State Bar exceeded its statutory authority. In view of the absence of any prior authority in California construing section 6031, and the obvious difficulty of the issue, we cannot fairly hold the governors personally liable for the 1982 expenditures. The bar has long been concerned with promoting and defending the independence of the judiciary. It formally endorsed the initiative which established the present system of judicial retention elections in place of partisan elections. It has frequently debated and proposed measures for merit selection and life tenure for judges. As we noted earlier, it is charged with an ethical obligation to defend the judiciary from unfair attack. (See fn. 21, ante.) Under these circumstances, we conclude as a matter of law that the Board of Governors could reasonably believe that it had the authority to take action in opposition to what it perceived to be an attack on an independent judiciary. Under Stanson v. Mott, supra, 17 Cal.3d 206, 226-227, such a reasonable belief precludes personal liability. V. Conclusion. In light of the structure of the California State Bar, as imposed in the state Constitution, statutes, and court decisions, we conclude that the activities of the bar should be governed by the standards applicable to governmental agencies. Thus lobbying, amicus curiae briefs, and the annual conference of delegates can be financed through dues as presently done. The bar, however, may not engage in election campaigning; its activities in publicizing Murray’s 1982 speech and distributing the educational packet violated that prohibition. In light of past uncertainty concerning the scope of the bar’s authority, however, we hold that the governors are not personally liable for the unauthorized expenditures. The judgment of the Court of Appeal is reversed, and the case remanded for further proceedings consistent with this opinion. Mosk, J., Arguelles, J., and White (Clinton W.), J., concurred. KAUFMAN, J. I concur in the majority’s conclusions that the State Bar is precluded from engaging in election campaigning and that the bar’s publication of President-elect Anthony Murray’s 1982 speech and distribution of the educational package violated that prohibition. I further concur in the majority’s holding that the bar governors are not personally liable for reimbursement of the unauthorized electioneering expenditures. I respectfully dissent, however, from its holding that, because of the State Bar’s status as a governmental agency, its expenditure of objecting members’ mandatory dues for political or ideological causes is lawful and exempt from constitutional scrutiny. Discussion The majority opinion considers the California State Bar to be “best described as analogous to a governmental agency.” If viewed as a governmental agency, the majority declares, the bar is not subject to First Amendment constraints when spending its objecting members’ mandatory dues because a governmental agency may expend tax revenues to perform its statutory duties without restrictions and “the distinction between revenue derived from mandatory dues and revenue from other sources is immaterial.” (Maj. opn. at p. 1167.) Therefore, the majority concludes, the bar may properly spend funds for “all matters pertaining to the advancement of the administration of justice,” (Bus. & Prof. Code, § 6031, subd. (a)), which it defines expansively as virtually anything having to do with law, except electioneering. While it correctly characterizes the State Bar as a governmental agency, the majority opinion is incorrect in concluding that because the State Bar is a governmental agency its expenditure of objecting members’ dues is exempt from First Amendment scrutiny. That error is grounded in the majority’s failure to recognize the significance of a crucial fact: The California State Bar derives its funds from membership dues which all attorneys, and only attorneys, in California are required by law to pay as a condition precedent to pursuing their livelihood—the practice of law—in the state. It is this fact—compelled membership in a professional association with mandatory dues as a condition to practice the profession of law—that subjects the State Bar to the constitutional scrutiny from which most other governmental agencies may be exempt. In an unbroken line of cases, the United States Supreme Court has held that, when a state compels membership in an association as a condition precedent to earning a livelihood, the association’s objecting members’ First Amendment rights are infringed by its expenditure of mandatory membership dues for philosophical, political or ideological causes. Resistance to coerced association and intolerance of government-enforced support of philosophical, religious, political or ideological causes animated the founding of our nation and the drafting of its Constitution. Thomas Jefferson wrote in 1779 “that to compel a man to furnish contributions of money for the propagation of opinions which he disbelieves is sinful and tyrannical.” (Brant, James Madison: The Nationalist (1948) p. 354.) Madison warned that “the same authority which can force a citizen to contribute three pence only of his property for the support of any one establishment, may force him to conform to any other establishment in all cases . . . .” (II Writings of James Madison (Hunt ed. 1901) p. 186.) These principles have guided the United States Supreme Court’s First Amendment jurisprudence. “If an association is compelled, the individual should not ... be required to finance the promotion of causes with which he disagrees.” (Machinists v. Street (1961) 367 U.S. 740, 776 [6 L.Ed.2d 1141, 1165, 81 S.Ct. 1784] [Douglas, J., cone.].) “[T]he First Amendment, fairly construed, deprives the Government of all power to make any person pay out one single penny against his will to be used in any way to advocate doctrines or views he is against, whether economic, scientific, political, religious or any other.” (Id. at p. 791 [6 L.Ed.2d at p. 1174] [Black, J., dis.].) First Amendment principles “prohibit the [state] from requiring any [individual] to contribute to the support of an ideological cause he may oppose as a condition of holding a job . . . .” (Abood v. Detroit Board of Education (1977) 431 U.S. 209, 235 [52 L.Ed.2d 261, 284, 441, 97 S.Ct. 1782].) Individuals can “be required to become ‘members’ of [an association], but those who object[] [can]not be burdened with any part of the [association’s] expenditures in support of political or ideological causes.” (Ellis v. Railway Clerks (1984) 466 U.S. 435, 447 [80 L.Ed.2d 428, 104 S.Ct. 1883].) “The amount at stake for each individual dissenter does not diminish this concern. For, whatever the amount, the quality of [the dissenters’] interest in not being compelled to subsidize the propagation of political or ideological views that they oppose is clear.” (Teachers v. Hudson (1986) 475 U.S. 292, 305 [89 L.Ed.2d 232, 246, 106 S.Ct. 1066, 1075].) Indeed, Hudson emphasized this point by relying on the principles expressed by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison quoted above. (Id. at p. 305, fn. 15 [89 L.Ed.2d at p. 246, 106 S.Ct. at p. 1075]; see also Abood at pp. 234-235, fn. 31 [52 L.Ed.2d at p. 284]; Street at p. 778, fn. 4 [6 L.Ed.2d at p. 1166] [Douglas, J., cone.].) The United States Supreme Court has thus steadfastly invalidated coerced association to the extent it enforces financial support of political and ideological causes to which a member objects. In a series of decisions, the court has prohibited unions from expending the mandatory dues of objecting members for such causes not sufficiently related to the governmental interests justifying coerced association. (Ellis, supra, 466 U.S. at p. 447 [80 L.Ed.2d at p. 441].) As I explain below, these same First Amendment principles also preclude the California State Bar from spending its objecting members’ mandatory dues for controversial causes not sufficiently related to the governmental interests that justify compulsory bar membership. In this connection it is essential to keep in mind that except as to expenditures for electioneering, the principal question in this case is not whether the State Bar may lawfully make the expenditures at issue, but whether in doing so it may utilize the compulsory dues of objecting members and thereby compel those members to support causes they oppose. Simply concluding, as the majority does, that the State Bar is authorized to make the expenditures to which plaintiffs object does not resolve the constitutional question of whether plaintiffs’ First Amendment rights are infringed by the expenditure of their compulsory dues for political and ideological activities to which they object. I. Expenditure of Dues for Political and Ideological Activities Violates the First Amendment A. Historical Origins In Railway Employes' Dept. v. Hanson (1956) 351 U.S. 225 [100 L.Ed. 1112, 76 S.Ct. 714], the United States Supreme Court first considered a challenge to a “union shop” agreement. Nonunion employees complained that such an agreement, by forcing them “into ideological and political associations which violate their right to freedom of conscience, freedom of association, and freedom of thought,” violated their First Amendment rights. (Id. at p. 236 [100 L.Ed.2d at p. 1132].) Because the challenge was directed to the facial validity of the Railway Labor Act, the court confined its inquiry to the statute, holding that Congress, acting under its broad commerce clause powers, could reasonably determine that industrial peace required all employees who benefitted from union representation to support financially “the work of the union in the realm of collective bargaining.” (Id. at p. 235 [100 L.Ed.2d at p. 1132].) The court specifically noted, however, that First Amendment problems would arise if “ ‘assessments’ are in fact imposed for purposes not germane to collective bargaining.” (Ibid.) Thus, the court indicated the possibility of a First Amendment challenge in situations where a union, under a union shop agreement, required objecting employees to support financially activities not germane to the union’s collective bargaining duties. (See id. at p. 238 [100 L.Ed.2d at p. 1134].) Just such a challenge was presented in Machinists v. Street, supra, 367 U.S. 740, 749 [6 L.Ed.2d 1141, 1150]. In Street, the plaintiff alleged that the union, which required him to pay dues under a union shop agreement, used these funds “to finance the campaigns of candidates for federal and state offices whom he opposed, and to promote the propagation of political and economic doctrines, concepts and ideologies with which he disagreed.” (367 U.S. at p. 744 [6 L.Ed.2d at p. 1147].) The court chose, however, to avoid the constitutional question, basing its decision instead on an interpretation of the relevant statute. It held that Congress, in enacting the union shop provision (§ 2, Eleventh, of the Railway Labor Act), never intended to grant the authority to a union, over the employee’s objection, to spend his money for political causes which he opposes. (Id. at p. 768 [6 L.Ed.2d at pp. 1160-1161].) B. The Court’s Consideration of Integrated Bar Associations In a companion case to Street, supra, 367 U.S. 740 (Lathrop v. Donohue (1960) 367 U.S. 820 [6 L.Ed.2d 1191, 81 S.Ct. 1826]), the United States Supreme Court considered a challenge by members of the Wisconsin State Bar to an order of the Wisconsin Supreme Court requiring all attorneys to become bar members. The plaintiff, a Wisconsin attorney, had paid his dues under protest and sued for a refund, claiming that the state bar used his dues to engage in political activities which he opposed and that, by coercing him to join the bar and support its political activities, the Wisconsin Supreme Court order integrating the state bar was unconstitutional. The United States Supreme Court concluded that by integrating the bar the Wisconsin Legislature and Supreme Court had advanced the public interest “ ‘by maintaining high standards of conduct in the legal profession and by aiding in the efficient administration of justice’ ” (Lathrop, supra, at pp. 831-832 [6 L.Ed.2d at p. 1199]). Relying on its analysis in Hanson, supra, 351 U.S. 225, the court stated that “the Supreme Court of Wisconsin, in order to further the State’s legitimate interests in raising the quality of professional services, may constitutionally require that the costs of improving the profession in this fashion should be shared by the subjects and beneficiaries of the regulatory program, the lawyers, even though the organization created to attain the objective also engages in some legislative activity.” (Lathrop at p. 843 [6 L.Ed.2d at p. 1205].) Several points underlying this holding have particular significance to the instant case. First, it is significant that the court considered the regulatory function of the Wisconsin State Bar to be the primary justification for the compulsory membership requirement. (See Schneyer, The Incoherence of the Unified Bar Concept: Generalizing from the Wisconsin Case (1983) Am. B. Found. Res. J. 1, 54-55 [“Basically, Brennan saw the state bar as a public agency created to fund and administer regulatory or governmental programs.”].) Second, the court employed language reminiscent of its commerce clause decisions. This suggests that the state’s regulatory or police power, similar in scope to Congress’ commerce clause power (see ante, fn. 2), was the actual source of authority underlying integration of the bar. (Accord Herron v. State Bar (1944) 24 Cal.2d 53, 64 [147 P.2d 543].) Both these points emphasize the court’s identification of the justifying governmental interest as the advancement of the delivery of quality legal services to the public. Finally, the court implicitly balanced the state’s interest in regulating the legal profession with what, in that case, appeared to be a minimal intrusion into the attorneys’ associational and speech rights. (Schneyer, The Incoherence of the Unified Bar Concept, supra, at p. 51.) The court managed to avoid the plaintiff’s claim that the bar’s use of his mandatory dues to support political activities violated the First Amendment by finding the record insufficiently developed in this regard. (Lathrop, supra, 367 U.S. 820, 845-846 [6 L.Ed.2d 1191, 1206-1207].) It is significant to the case before us, however, that only four of the justices deemed the constitutional issue not ripe for adjudication (Chief Justice Warren and Associate Justices Brennan, Clark and Stewart), while five justices considered the issue to be squarely presented. Of these five, two found the use of objecting members’ mandatory dues for political purposes to be constitutional (id. at p. 865 [6 L.Ed.2d at pp. 1217-1218] [Harlan, J., cone, in judgment, joined by Frankfurter, J.]), two found such use to be unconstitutional (id. at p. 871 [6 L.Ed.2d at p. 1221] [Black, J., dis.]; id. at pp. 884-885 [8 L.Ed.2d at pp. 1228-1229] [Douglas, J., dis.]), and one considered the practice of law to be a “special privilege” and thus not a “right” protected by the First Amendment. (Id. at p. 865 [6 L.Ed.2d at p. 1218] [Whittaker, J., cone, in result].) Moreover, because the Lathrop majority explicitly detailed the particular facts it would have needed to address the First Amendment question (id. at pp. 846-847 [8 L.Ed.2d at p. 1207]), it appears that, had the record been sufficiently developed in these regards, the entire court would have agreed that the First Amendment issue was squarely presented. Indeed, the court subsequently characterized Lathrop by stating that “[t]he only proposition about which a majority of the Court in Lathrop agreed was that the constitutional issues should be reached.” (Abood, supra, 431 U.S. at p. 233, fn. 29 [52 L.Ed.2d at p. 283].) Thus, at the very least, Lathrop, supra, 367 U.S. 820, supports the proposition that use of the mandatory bar dues of objecting members for political and ideological purposes presents a clear constitutional question. Subsequent cases have established that even the generalized allegations found wanting in Lathrop are sufficient to raise the First Amendment challenge. (See Abood, supra, 431 U.S. at p. 241 [52 L.Ed.2d at p. 288]; Arrow v. Dow (10th Cir. 1981) 636 F.2d 287, 289.) The majority in this case avoids the constitutional issue by labeling the State Bar as a “governmental agency,” and concluding that a “governmental agency may use unrestricted revenue ... for any purposes within its authority.” (Maj. opn, at p. 1167, italics added.) What the majority fails to recognize, however, is that under federal constitutional law the use of objecting members’ mandatory dues for political or ideological purposes is not unrestricted. Abood, supra, 431 U.S. 209, and its progeny make this abundantly clear as I shall further explain in the following section. Further, the majority’s effort to distinguish the California State Bar from the integrated bars of other states, including Wisconsin, whose courts have uniformly applied the Abood holding to analyze the question of use of mandatory bar dues (see post, pp. 1180-1181), is unpersuasive. Simply saying that none of these states’ bars “rest upon a constitutional and statutory structure comparable to that of the California State Bar” does not explain why such a distinction renders the California State Bar immune from the First Amendment constraints, while the Wisconsin Bar is not. The United States Supreme Court’s decision in Lathrop, supra, 367 U.S. 820, clearly supports the proposition that an integrated bar’s use of mandatory dues of objecting members for political or ideological causes is subject to constitutional scrutiny. It was not until the decision in Abood v. Detroit Board of Education, supra, 431 U.S. 209, however, that the court explicated the First Amendment issue. C. The Constitutional Issue In Abood, the United States Supreme Court first addressed the constitutional issues raised when a union, or, as I would hold, an integrated state bar, spends objecting members’ dues for political or ideological purposes. Because the freedom to associate for the purpose of advancing ideas and beliefs is protected by the First Amendment, the court reasoned that “contributing to an organization for the purpose of spreading a political message is protected by the First Amendment.” (Abood, supra, 431 U.S. at p. 234 [52 L.Ed.ld at p. 284].) Recognizing further that the First Amendment is violated when one is “compelled to make, rather that prohibited from making, contributions for political purposes” (id.), the court concluded that the Constitution “prohibits the state] from requiring [an individual] to contribute to the support of an ideological cause he may oppose as a condition of holding a job . . . .” (Id. at p. 235 [52 L.Ed.2d at p. 284].) Thus, Abood holds that the First Amendment prohibits the state from coercing an individual, by threatening the loss of his livelihood, to financially support ideological or political causes to which he objects. (Abood, supra, 431 U.S. 209, 235-236 [52 L.Ed.2d at pp. 284-285]; Ellis, supra, 466 U.S. 435, 455 [80 L.Ed.2d 428, 446]; cf. Wooley v. Maynard (1977) 430 U.S. 705, 715 [51 L.Ed.2d 752, 762-763, 97 S.Ct. 1428]; Pacific Gas & Electric Co. v. Public Util. Comm'n, supra, 475 U.S. at p. 9 [89 L.Ed.2d at pp. 7-8]; Prune-yard Shopping Center v. Robins (1980) 447 U.S. 74, 100 [64 L.Ed.2d 741, 764, 100 S.Ct. 2035].) The event that triggers the constitutional inquiry is the state’s authorizing, or compelling, support of political or ideological causes through the coercive threat of the loss of one’s livelihood for refusing to contribute. Attorneys are forced to join the State Bar as a condition precedent to practicing law in the state, just as employees are forced to support unions under provisions for union and agency shops. While the state’s need to regulate the legal profession may justify such coercion, it does not justify compulsory financial support of political or ideological causes by objecting members. Thus, when the State Bar spends a portion of compulsory membership dues on political or ideological causes rather than on regulatory functions, the identical First Amendment concerns which faced the United States Supreme Court in Abood, supra, 431 U.S. 209, are presented. Recognizing these concerns, every other court that has considered First Amendment challenges to state bar political expenditures has applied the Abood analysis. (See Gibson v. The Florida Bar (11th Cir. 1986) 798 F.2d 1564, 1568; Falk v. State Bar of Michigan (1981) 411 Mich. 63, 106 [305 N.W.2d 201, 213] [Falk I]; Falk v. State Bar of Michigan (1983) 418 Mich. 270, 290-91 [342 N.W.2d 504, 410] [Falk II], cert. den. (1984) 469 U.S. 925 [83 L.Ed.2d 253, 105 S.Ct. 315]; Reynolds v. State Bar of Montana (Mont. 1983) 660 P.2d 581, 581-582 [40 A.L.R.4th 669] [without citing Abood, court ordered refund to objecting members of dues spent for political activities]; Petition of Chapman (1986) 128 N.H. 24, 35-36 [509 A.2d 753, 755] [N.H. State Bar]; Arrow v. Dow (D.N.M. 1982) 544 F.Supp. 458, 460 [N.M. State Bar]; Schneider v. Colegio de Abogados de P.R. (D.P.R. 1983) 565 F.Supp. 963, 965, on remand, (D.P.R. 1988) 682 F.Supp. 674, 683-684 [bar association of P.R.]; Hollar v. Government of the Virgin Islands (3d Cir. 1988) 857 F.2d 163, 170 [bar association of the Virgin Islands].) I would join the jurisdictions that apply Abood’’s constitutional analysis. Indeed, as the cited decisions clearly demonstrate, federal constitutional law compels that analysis. As I explain in the next section, simply labeling the State Bar as a “governmental agency” does not, the majority to the contrary notwithstanding, exempt this case from First Amendment analysis. II. Governmental Expenditure of Mandatory Dues Is Not Equivalent to Governmental Expenditure of Taxes The majority errs further in broadly stating—without benefit of authority—that a “governmental agency may use unrestricted revenue, whether derived from taxes, dues, fees, tolls, tuition, donat