In the case of Middlesex County Ethics Committee v. Garden State Bar Association et al., 1981, the Supreme Court ruled that a state disciplinary proceeding against an attorney is not subject to federal court intervention under Younger v. Harris (1971). The New Jersey Supreme Court had issued an order temporarily suspending an attorney from practice due to his criminal indictment for misappropriation of clients' funds and other unethical conduct. The lawyer's professional association filed suit in Federal District Court seeking injunctive relief on grounds that the suspension violated their constitutional rights to procedural due process and equal protection. However, the U.S Supreme Court held that since there was no showing of bad faith harassment or any other unusual circumstance that would call for equitable relief, it was inappropriate for federal courts to interfere with ongoing state proceedings involving important state interests such as regulation of attorneys' conduct.

In the dissenting opinion for Middlesex County Ethics Committee v. Garden State Bar Association, Justice Brennan argued that the majority's decision to abstain from ruling on a First Amendment issue was incorrect and unnecessary. He contended that federal courts should not avoid making decisions on constitutional issues simply because state proceedings are ongoing. Furthermore, he believed that this case did not meet any of the three requirements necessary for Younger abstention: there was no ongoing state judicial proceeding when the federal action started; it did not involve an important state interest; and there were no adequate opportunities in the state proceedings to raise constitutional challenges. Therefore, according to Justice Brennan, abstaining from ruling in this case served only to delay resolution of an important First Amendment question without providing any clear benefit.