Jackson Lewis Law Firm Logo On July 9, 2021, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, sitting en banc, issued a 7-3 decision in the closely watched case Sandor Demkovich v. St Andrew the Apostle Parish, Calumet City and the Archdiocese of Chicago . The Seventh Circuit found that the ministerial exception acted as a per se bar to the plaintiff’s hostile work environment claims. This decision is the latest development in a rapidly developing area of the law that offers a potentially sweeping defense for religious institutions against employment claims by certain employees. The Seventh Circuit’s decision deepens a split among the circuit courts on whether the ministerial exception bars hostile work environment claims, with the Ninth Circuit holding that hostile work environment claims are not barred and the Tenth and Seventh Circuits finding the opposite. Given this split among the circuits, the Supreme Court will likely have to resolve this issue. Background of the Ministerial Exception The ministerial exception is a legal doctrine stemming from the First Amendment of the Constitution’s Religion Clauses. Specifically, the Establishment Clause and the Free Exercise Clause have led courts to determine that the government, including courts, cannot interfere in disputes […]
