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Religious entity’s liability for non-religious bias at issue Drastic impacts forecast regardless of outcome on appeal The Fourth Circuit will be the latest court to examine the interplay between federal job discrimination law and religious freedom protections when it hears arguments Wednesday in a Catholic high school’s appeal of its loss in a gay teacher’s bias lawsuit. Charlotte Catholic High School fired Lonnie Billard after his announcement on Facebook, soon after North Carolina legalized same-sex marriage, that he intended to marry his boyfriend. The school and two co-defendants are challenging a lower court’s ruling that they’re liable for sex discrimination under Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act. The issues on appeal include whether the decision to fire Billard falls under an exemption in Title VII for religious organizations. The defendants say the case comes down to whether religious employers can require their employees to support the organization’s core beliefs and practices. Billard, who worked at the school for nearly 14 years, says the issue is whether religious institutions are entitled to discriminate against employees—other than those who perform as “ministers"—whenever the bias is motivated by the institution’s religious beliefs. Advocates on both sides predict dire consequences depending […]