Legal Definitions - common calling

The term common calling refers to two related but distinct legal concepts:

• First, it describes an ordinary, lawful occupation or profession that individuals have a fundamental right to pursue. This right is protected by constitutional principles, ensuring that citizens can engage in legitimate work without unreasonable government interference or discrimination.

• Second, it refers to a commercial enterprise that provides essential services to the general public and, due to the nature of its business, has a legal obligation to serve anyone who requests its services, provided they meet reasonable, non-discriminatory conditions.

Here are some examples illustrating these meanings:

• Example 1 (Right to pursue an occupation): Imagine a state passes a law requiring all aspiring freelance photographers to pay an annual licensing fee of $10,000, while other similar creative professions have no such fee or a much lower one. A new photographer, Maya, who wishes to start her own business, could argue that this excessive and discriminatory fee infringes upon her right to pursue photography as a common calling. Her argument would be that photography is an ordinary, lawful occupation, and the state is creating an unreasonable barrier to her ability to earn a living in her chosen profession.

• Example 2 (Duty to serve the public): Consider a municipal water utility company that is the sole provider of water services to a city. A new family moves into a house within the utility's service area and applies for water connection, but the utility refuses to provide service without a valid reason, such as a history of non-payment or a lack of necessary infrastructure. In this scenario, the water utility operates as a common calling in the second sense. It provides an essential public service and therefore has a legal duty to serve all residents within its designated service area who meet standard requirements, and cannot arbitrarily deny service.

• Example 3 (Duty to serve the public): A ride-sharing company operates extensively within a city, offering transportation services to the public through its app. If this company were deemed to have the characteristics of a common calling (similar to a traditional taxi service), it might be legally obligated to accept ride requests from any customer within its service area, regardless of their background, as long as they comply with the company's terms of service. For instance, it could not refuse a ride based on a customer's race or religion, as that would violate its duty to serve the general public without discrimination.