In the case of Spevack v. Strauss et al., attorney Melvin Spevack was disbarred from practicing law in New York for invoking his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination during a disciplinary proceeding. The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court and the State Bar Association had asked him to produce financial records and testify about alleged professional misconduct, but he refused on constitutional grounds. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled 5-4 in favor of Spevack, stating that lawyers cannot be punished for exercising their constitutional rights under the Fifth Amendment's protection against self-incrimination. This ruling expanded these protections to include proceedings before state bar associations, not just criminal trials.

In the dissenting opinion for Spevack v. Strauss, Justice White argued that an attorney's refusal to testify in a disciplinary proceeding could be viewed as evidence of professional misconduct and grounds for disbarment. He believed that the Fifth Amendment protection against self-incrimination did not apply in this context because it was not a criminal case but rather an administrative one aimed at maintaining ethical standards within the legal profession. Furthermore, he contended that attorneys have certain obligations due to their role as officers of the court which may require them to provide testimony even when it might incriminate them personally. Thus, he disagreed with the majority view that invoking Fifth Amendment rights should never lead to negative consequences such as disbarment.