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WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Justice, 19 states, prominent legal scholars, and diverse faith groups representing over 90 million Americans yesterday submitted friend-of-the-court briefs asking the Supreme Court to confirm that Catholic Charities Bureau of the Diocese of Superior’s care for the poor, the elderly, and the disabled are at the very center of its religious mission. In Catholic Charities Bureau v. Wisconsin Labor & Industry Review Commission , the Supreme Court agreed to review a Wisconsin Supreme Court ruling that treated Catholic Charities’ ministry to the poor and needy as “primarily secular.” This decision meant that Catholic Charities could not join the Wisconsin Catholic Church’s unemployment compensation program but was stuck paying into the state’s less efficient and more costly plan. Represented by Becket, Catholic Charities is asking the Court to reject Wisconsin’s attempt to cut off Catholic Charities and its religious ministry from the rest of the Catholic Church in Wisconsin. Twenty-two friend-of-the-court briefs were filed in support of Catholic Charities. Most Catholic dioceses have a social ministry arm that serves those in need. Catholic Charities carries out this important work for the Diocese of Superior, Wisconsin, by helping the disabled, elderly, and those living in […]