Foreign Law in American Courts
Religion and the Law
California Public Charter Schools' Independent Study Programs Can Insist on Secular Curricular Materials
"The Supreme Court has recently confirmed that the Free Exercise Clause does not prohibit a state from providing 'a strictly secular education in its public schools'"—and, the court held, that extends to California charter schools and their parental "home-based direct instruction approved by the school and coordinated, evaluated, and supervised by state-certified teachers."
Excluding Religious School That "Forfeited a Girls' Playoff Basketball Game to Avoid Playing a Team with a Transgender Athlete" Violated Free Exercise Clause
So the Second Circuit held today, concluding that the facts surrounding this particular exclusion showed hostility to religion, and not just the neutral application of generally applicable rules.
Prison Guards Forcibly Cut a Rastafarian Inmate's Dreadlocks. SCOTUS Will Decide If They Can Be Sued Over It.
The Supreme Court will hear Landor v. Louisiana Department of Corrections and Public Safety this fall.
Documenting Denial: A Record of Rejection Faced by Gay Couples
Over the past two decades, scores of business owners across the nation have sought to refuse services for same-sex weddings, an SMU Law School study finds
New Jersey Town Drops Plan to Condemn a Church to Build a Park and Pickleball Courts
The mayor abandoned the plan after it aroused strong political resistance and threats of litigation.
Egypt's Land Grab Threatens the World's Oldest Christian Monastery
St. Catherine’s Monastery has been continuously inhabited for over 1,500 years. An Egyptian court ruling ended the monastery's longstanding separation from the government.
Court Rejects Oklahoma Education Department's Lawsuit Over Letters from Advocacy Group
"How do Defendant's letters interfere with Plaintiffs' authority or ability to administer Oklahoma's public schools?"
Religious Hiring: What Courts Should Do
Courts don't need to stretch the ministerial exception to cover every case.
Religious Hiring and Expressive Association
Does the First Amendment freedom of expressive association protect religious hiring?
Religious Hiring and Church Autonomy
Does the church-autonomy doctrine extend to hiring decisions outside the ministerial exception?
Religious Hiring and Title VII's Religious Exemption
A textualist solution to controversies over religious hiring.
Religious Hiring Beyond the Ministerial Exception
An important church–state question likely headed to the Supreme Court.
Update on Potential Condemnation of New Jersey Church to Build a Park and Pickleball Courts
After a public outcry, the scheduled vote on the plan to use eminent domain has been postponed indefinitely. If the Town of Toms River does try to condemn the church, there is likely to be a major legal battle.
Religious Exemption Claim by Nonprofit Providing Supervised Illegal Drug Use Can Go Forward
The Third Circuit held that such organizations may raise religious exemption claims, though it declined to decide (at this stage of the litigation) whether the claim would prevail on the facts of this case.
"The Alleged Misdeeds of Jewish Individuals, Elected Officials, Judges and Others in Myriad Circumstances,"
"including Plaintiff's divorce proceedings and criminal case."
Trump Administration Targets Iranian Christians for Deportation
They face severe persecution if deported to Iran.
Appeals Court Blocks Louisiana Ten Commandments in Classrooms Law
"If H.B. 71 goes into effect, Students will be subjected to unwelcome displays of the Ten Commandments for the entirety of their public school education. There is no opt-out option," the court's opinion reads.
Utah Passed a Religious Freedom Law. Then Cops Went After This Psychedelic Church.
A religious group using psilocybin mushrooms in ceremonies "put the State of Utah's commitment to religious freedom to the test," a federal judge wrote.
Fighting Antisemitism Should Not Come at the Expense of the First Amendment
The Antisemitism Awareness Act threatens the First Amendment by empowering federal bureaucrats to police political and religious expression.
Female Nude Spa in Washington Can't Bar Transgender Clients With Male Genitalia, Federal Court Rules
Olympus Spa had sued on First Amendment grounds.
A Split Supreme Court Says Oklahoma Can't Have a Religious Charter School
The deadlocked court doesn't provide much clarity to sticky questions about the limits of religious freedom.
School Choice Could Defuse Culture War Fights
A Supreme Court case about religious parents' rights underscores a deeper problem: Without choice, public schools become a culture war battleground with no exit.
Brief from Prof. Justin Driver (Yale) and Me in School Curriculum / Religious Opt-Out Case
"This Court should not announce an opt-out right for religious objectors under the Free Exercise Clause that its precedents would foreclose for students objecting to public-school curricula under the Free Speech Clause."
The Supreme Court Is About To Hear 2 Education Cases. Neither Goes Far Enough.
The Court will weigh religious opt-outs and charter school discrimination. But true educational freedom means funding students, not systems.
