Connick v. Myers

In Connick v. Myers, 461 U.S. 138 (1983), the Supreme Court of the United States declared that "whether an employee's speech addresses a matter of public concern must be determined by the content, form, and context of a given statement, as revealed by the whole record." Id. at 147-48, 1690, 720. In Connick, an assistant district attorney distributed a questionnaire to all fellow assistant district attorneys regarding their views on office policies, after being informed of a transfer to which she was opposed. Id. at 141, 1687, 716. The questionnaire included questions relating to office transfer policy, office morale, the need for a grievance committee, the level of confidence in supervisors, and whether employees felt pressured to work in political campaigns. Id. The Court found that only the question regarding political pressure to work in political campaigns constituted a matter of public concern because unlike the other questions which solely addressed internal office affairs, pressure to work in political campaigns is a matter of interest to the community. Id. at 149, 1691, 721.