Typically law firms will provide some services free. They classify the work as “pro bono publico,” from Latin, meaning for the public good. And the term is usually shortened to pro bono, as in a lawyer representing a client free is described as working pro bono.

Because the services are typically offered to those who do not have the ability to pay, pro bono work has been associated with liberal causes. But that is changing, Vivia Chen writes.

“Bolstered by influential groups like the Federalist Society, religious organizations and pro bono advocates, big firms now regularly champion libertarian causes such as free speech and property rights,” she writes. Some are challenging race-based policies and representing groups opposed to gay rights and abortion.

For the most part, the lawyers interviewed in the article said that taking on conservative causes does not cause problems within the firm or with their paying clients.

For example, Donald B. Ayer, Jones Day’s pro bono partner, said that at his firm, lawyers can take on almost any project, providing there is no conflict of interest. “It’s a free country.”

All this can lead to some strange bedfellows.

“In the Bong Hits 4 Jesus case recently argued before the Supreme Court, the American Civil Liberties Union sided with evangelical Christian groups to challenge restrictions on high school students,” Ms. Chen writes.

The court ruled against the students.