Earlier this spring, two churches filed a federal lawsuit against Morris County, alleging discrimination after being denied grant funding. Vianella Burns , Patch Staff Earlier this spring, two churches filed a federal lawsuit against Morris County, alleging discrimination after being denied grant funding. (Google Maps) MENDHAM, NJ — Two Morris…
Revised Lawsuit Filed By Long Valley Church Over Taxpayer Money
Earlier this spring, two churches filed a federal lawsuit against Morris County, alleging discrimination after being denied grant funding. Vianella Burns , Patch Staff Earlier this spring, two churches filed a federal lawsuit against Morris County, alleging discrimination after being denied grant funding. (Google Maps ) LONG VALLEY, NJ —…
Ex-Kings Announcer’s ‘All Lives Matter’ Case Advances in Court
Former Sacramento Kings announcer Grant Napear could now see part of his case over firing for an "All Lives Matter" tweet go to discovery. A federal judge on Wednesday partially denied a motion to dismiss former Sacramento Kings play-by-play announcer Grant Napear’s case that he was illegally fired and discriminated…
Is the Supreme Court giving favorable treatment to religion?
Supreme Court Have religious zealots coopted the Supreme Court? The left seems to think so. Pieces written about its last two terms, in particular, make various versions of this claim. They’ve said the court allegedly wishes to end the separation of church and state . They’ve said the majority of…
Examining Implications for Freedom of Speech, Religious Accommodation, LGBTQ Rights After Recent Rulings
Michael Maslanka A birthday ending with a “0” is bearing down on me. As with other Baby Boomers, thoughts pivot from temporal concerns toward transcendent ones. So, a very recent trifecta of cases involving religion in the workplace snagged my attention: two from SCOTUS and one from the Fifth Circuit.…
Supreme Court Fortifies Standard for Religious Accommodations
Employers will need to prove religious accommodations inflict substantial costs before denying them The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that employers can only deny an employee’s request for a religious accommodation under federal law if they can prove it would result in substantial increased costs for the business. In a…
Religious Charter Schools: Another Brick in the Wall of Separation?
The idea that religion should be isolated from our civil institutions has overwhelmingly captured the American popular imagination . Recently however, the U.S. Supreme Court has been dismantling this “wall of separation” narrative, brick by brick, to allow more freedom for private religious expression and activity. Over the past year,…
Is Refusing To Provide ‘Expressive Service’ a Legal Right or Discrimination? The Supreme Court May Have Decided
Late last month, the United States Supreme Court ruled in a split decision that Colorado can’t force, through its anti-discrimination law, a business owner who provides expressive services like graphic design and website creation to make wedding websites for same-sex couples. To do so, the court found, would violate the…
Getting the Get: Contract Law May be the Solution
Photo: Adobe Stock As attorneys focusing their practice on divorce, we are often involved in trying to procure a Jewish divorce, also known as a “Get” for our clients. Why does this issue arise during a civil divorce and what can be done when one spouse refuses to give the…
How the First Amendment can save affirmative action
People walk through the gate on Harvard Yard at the Harvard University campus on June 29, 2023 in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The Supreme Court recently ruled that race-conscious admission policies used by Harvard and the University of North Carolina violate the Constitution, bringing an end to affirmative action in higher education.…
Supreme Court Clarifies Standard for Employers Evaluating Religious Accommodation Requests
On June 29, 2023, the US Supreme Court issued a decision clarifying the standard employers must apply in considering an employee’s religious accommodation request under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. In Groff v. DeJoy , the justices unanimously ruled that Title VII requires employers who deny such requests…
We’ve Entered a New Era of Tiered Constitutional Rights
(Photo by Celal Gunes / Anadolu Agency via Getty Images) In 1943, as the end of World War II was nowhere in sight and when patriotic national unity around the defeat of fascist aggression from Germany and Japan was at its height, the US Supreme Court ruled in West Virginia…
Peoria school board member will stop quoting scripture at public meetings—legal warnings, public opinion prompted compliance
Peoria Unified School District Administration Building Last month the Peoria Unified School District received a letter from the Freedom From Religion Foundation stating grounds of “imposing religion” on those in public attendance and if continued, “could subject the district to unnecessary liability and potential financial strain.” During Thursday’s meeting, Bible…
Religion digest
Almobarak Cultural Center Islamic services for Juma prayer are held at the Almobarak Cultural Center, 142 Ski Motel Point, every Friday at 1 p.m. The public is welcome to attend. Call Omar Almobarak at 501-767-0214 for more information. Christway Unity Church Christway Unity Church, 45 Crown, meets on the first…
Religion digest
Almobarak Cultural Center Islamic services for Juma prayer are held at the Almobarak Cultural Center, 142 Ski Motel Point, every Friday at 1 p.m. The public is welcome to attend. Call Omar Almobarak at 501-767-0214 for more information. Christway Unity Church Christway Unity Church, 45 Crown, meets on the first…
Judge says SCOTUS ruling for Christian web designer means she doesn’t have to marry same-sex couples
Waco, Texas Justice of the Peace Dianne Hensley (screengrab via First Liberty Institute). The fallout from a Christian web-designer’s victory in the Supreme Court continued as a Texas judge attempted to use the ruling to deny marriage to gay couples. Dianne Hensley, a justice of the peace in Waco, Texas,…
Supreme Court Clarifies Standard for Employers Evaluating Religious Accommodation Requests
On June 29, 2023, the US Supreme Court issued a decision clarifying the standard employers must apply in considering an employee’s religious accommodation request under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. In Groff v. DeJoy , the justices unanimously ruled that Title VII requires employers who deny such requests…
Amish Religious Freedom Wins Out Over Septic Tank Rules
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Members of a deeply conservative Amish community in Minnesota don’t need to install septic systems to dispose of their “gray water,” the state Court of Appeals ruled Monday in a long-running religious freedom case that went all the way up to the U.S. Supreme Court. A three-judge…
Court sides with Amish in case pitting septic tank rules against religious beliefs
Stock image What to Know A state appeals court says members of a deeply conservative Amish community in Minnesota don’t need to install septic systems to dispose of their “gray water.” The ruling came Monday from the state Court of Appeals in a long-running religious freedom case that went all…
The Colorado website designer’s win is one of dozens of federal cases where religious beliefs and LGBTQ+ rights have clashed
Login | July 11, 2023 University of Nebraska-Lincoln (THE CONVERSATION) Does a Colorado designer’s belief that marriage is between one man and one woman merit an exemption to state law barring discrimination against LGBTQ+ people? On June 30, 2023, the Supreme Court decided 6-3 that the answer is yes: Requiring…
U.S. Supreme Court “Clarifies” Religious Accommodation Standard After Nearly Half a Century
On June 29, 2023, the United States Supreme Court issued a significant decision in Groff v. DeJoy , No. 22-174 (June 29, 2023), in which it “clarified” the religious accommodation standard under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. Uprooting nearly half a century of precedent, the Court articulated that…
Court sides with Amish families in case that pits septic tank rules against religious beliefs
Members of a deeply conservative Amish community in Minnesota don’t need to install septic systems to dispose of their "gray water," the state Court of Appeals ruled Monday in a long-running religious freedom case that went all the way up to the U.S. Supreme Court. A three-judge panel ruled that…
Fifth Circuit Holds That Religious Employers May Be Entitled to Exemptions from Title VII’s LGBTQ Requirements
Subscribe to Our Mailing List > In Braidwood Management, Inc. v. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission , the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit held that religious employers may be exempt from Title VII requirements concerning sexual orientation and gender identity discrimination if those requirements are found to…
Supreme Court Rules in Favor of Religious Liberty in Groff v. DeJoy
In a significant legal milestone for religious liberty, the Supreme Court’s recent decision in Groff v. DeJoy , a case litigated with the assistance of NRB member First Liberty Institute, delivered a resounding affirmation of the rights of employees to freely exercise their religious beliefs. The ruling sets a powerful…
‘Freedom of Religion’ | Clergy Corner
The First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution states – 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 of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for…