News from around the world. Curated by Mark McDowell. Posts do not constitute agreement or endorsement.
On November 17, 2020, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ("EEOC") published a proposed update to its 2008 guidance on religious discrimination in the workplace. The five member commission voted 3-2 to issue the proposed guidance with the two democratic members objecting. The proposed guidance can be accessed here . Although…
Peter Youngren, founding pastor of Toronto International Celebration Church, based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada in a photo uploaded to Facebook on Nov. 2, 2020. A Canadian church has filed suit against a provincial government over a rule that prohibits gatherings of more than 10 people, arguing that it interferes with…
The Douglas County Judicial and Law Enforcement Center is pictured in this file photo from Aug. 4, 2020. photo by: Journal-World File Photo In an ongoing legal dispute over a Douglas County health order that limits bars’ operating hours amid the coronavirus pandemic, an attorney now says a U.S. Supreme…
This post arrives thanks to Erica M. Van Heyde, a 2020 graduate of The Ohio State University Mortiz College of Law, who joins Squire Patton Boggs as an associate in 2021. Like most states, Kentucky is experiencing a surge in COVID-19 cases. Governor Andy Beshear has responded by implementing a…
Mark Kwiecienski complains about menorahs in public parks in Basalt ( “Menorahs don’t belong on public land,” Dec. 4, The Aspen Times). He says such religious displays violate the prohibition on “separation of church and state” and the establishment clause of the U.S. Constitution. Kwiecienski is wrong on the facts…
On November 25, 2020, the U.S. Supreme Court ordered a preliminary injunction in Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn v. Cuomo , No. 20A87, holding that New York may not enforce 10- or 25-person congregation-size limits on certain Catholic churches and Orthodox synagogues, pending further Supreme Court litigation, because the restrictions…
Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito flatly rejected a plea by a Louisiana megachurch pastor to keep his church fully open against orders from the government to limit the size of worship gatherings due to the COVID-19 pandemic. That pastor, Tony Spell , whose full legal name is Mark Anthony Spell,…
Landon Coleman is pastor of Immanuel Baptist Church in Odessa. Reach him at landon@immanuelodessa.com or read his blog at Regular Pastor.com “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right…
They said they would do it and they have. A group of church leaders – including a vicar from Tunbridge Wells – has launched a claim for judicial review of the English and Welsh governments’ decision to close churches during lockdown. Rev Peter Sanlon In total 122 church leaders from…
On May 29, 2020, the Supreme Court denied an injunction in South Bay United Pentecostal Church v. Newsom . The Court’s order was a single sentence. Chief Justice Roberts wrote a solo concurrence that stretched about two pages. According to Westlaw, 114 cases have cited the Chief’s concurrence. (I cited…
They said they would do it and they have. A group of church leaders – including a vicar from Tunbridge Wells – has launched a claim for judicial review of the English and Welsh governments’ decision to close churches during lockdown. Rev Peter Sanlon In total 122 church leaders from…
SALEM, Mass., Nov. 12, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — While The Satanic Temple’s appeal in its lawsuit over Missouri’s abortion laws is still scheduled to be reviewed by the US Supreme Court to decide if they will hear the case, the US Supreme Court dismissed The Satanic Temple’s (TST’s) motion to disqualify…
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn, New York filed a petition for certiorari with the United States Supreme Court on Thursday, requesting an emergency injunction that would block COVID-19 restrictions on in-person church attendance. Though the Supreme Court previously rejected a similar challenge during the earlier stage of the pandemic,…
A federal lawsuit challenging restrictions on houses of worship, imposed by Delaware Gov. John Carney at the start of the pandemic, has been settled. In exchange for the Rev. Christopher Bullock dropping his lawsuit, Carney agreed that in any future emergency requiring state actions, the governor "must treat churches and…
Maine tuition case The 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld how Maine provides public education: utilizing nonsectarian private schools in areas without their own public school. The ruling, in Carson v. Makin , examined recent U.S. Supreme Court funding decisions that the plaintiff argued invalidated the sectarian restriction,…
Bill Chizek/iStock/Getty Images Plus The Supreme Court heard opening arguments in an important religious discrimination case on Wednesday that has been festering since 2018: Sharonell Fulton et. al. v. City of Philadelphia . Back in 2018, the liberal Philadelphia Inquirer discovered that two religiously based foster-care agencies — Bethany Christian…
Getty Images A federal appeals court has ruled against Maine parents challenging a state law that excludes religious schools from the state’s high school tuition program despite a recent ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court that struck down similar restrictions in Montana. The U.S. 1st Circuit Court of Appeals on…
SALEM, Mass., Oct. 29, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — The Satanic Temple (TST) has filed a motion asking the Supreme Court to disqualify Justice Amy Coney Barrett from ruling on TST’s lawsuit challenging Missouri’s abortion laws which discriminate against the religious belief of TST members that abortion is not murder. The motion…
(Pixabay image via Courthouse News) BOSTON (CN) — Maine can provide tuition reimbursement to parents who send their children to private schools but not to parents who send their children to religious schools, the First Circuit held Thursday. The 63-page ruling could have national implications inasmuch as roughly half the…
This article is part of a symposium previewing Fulton v. City of Philadelphia . Clare Kindall is the solicitor general for the state of Connecticut, which joined a multi-state amicus brief filed in support of Philadelphia. While in accord with the states’ filed brief, the views expressed here are entirely…
Of the roughly 32 lawsuits that have been filed since March against California Gov. Gavin Newsom, many allege his executive orders violate the religious liberty clauses of the California Constitution. Twenty-two active cases address religious freedom violations, education policies, forced closures of businesses, alleged violations of federal and state laws,…
An "Open for Worship" banner is posted outside the Crossroads Community Church in Yuba City, Calif., Thursday, July 9, 2020. (The Center Square) – Of the roughly 32 lawsuits that have been filed since March against California Gov. Gavin Newsom, many allege his executive orders violate the religious liberty clauses…
Lawyer Alexander Dushku explains religious freedom during his Education Week speech. (BYU Continuing Education) Lawyer Alexander Dushku explained religious freedom for those who do not practice law during his Education Week speech and gave examples of many court cases relating to religious freedom. Religious freedom is a topic widely spoken…
Colorado’s COVID-19 public health orders that limit the number of people who can attend indoor religious services and require worshippers to wear masks at all times are unconstitutional, a federal judge ruled. U.S. District Court Judge Daniel Domenico ruled last week that state officials cannot enforce mask-wearing mandates or some…
An "Open for Worship" banner is posted outside the Crossroads Community Church in Yuba City, Calif., Thursday, July 9, 2020. (The Center Square) – Of the roughly 32 lawsuits that have been filed since March against California Gov. Gavin Newsom, many allege his executive orders violate the religious liberty clauses…