Davis Polk, one of the country’s most prestigious law firms, recently rescinded employment offers made to three students who the firm believed led organizations at Harvard and Columbia that issued statements blaming Israel for the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas that left more than 1,400 Israelis dead.

On Tuesday, the firm said it was reconsidering that decision for two of the three students, who fought their dismissals and said that they did not authorize the letters, which did not have any individual signatories. The potential reversal highlights the complexities — for both employers and employees — of navigating what has quickly become one of the most emotionally divisive issues in recent decades.

The New York law firm said two of the students held leadership roles in groups that signed a letter at Columbia and one was affiliated with the Harvard Palestine Solidarity Groups, which jointly wrote a letter that held the “Israeli regime” responsible for the deadly violence.

[This is a tricky situation, ethically speaking. Employers are under no obligation to keep offers open that have not yet resulted in an agreement (at which point contract law would apply). But is it fair to penalize someone for belonging to an organization that expressed an ugly political/moral position if the person did not explicitly sign onto the statement personally? It may be complicated, especially for those of us who have been on the business side of cancellation more often. Should NRA members have job offers rescinded over a political statement on gun policy, for instance? For those who signed their own names to the statement, the ethics are much clearer. — Ed]