The Penultimate Day of Overtime July: Religious Liberty Wednesday

Tax Return Thursday is on deck.

On Wednesday, the Supreme Court decided two religious liberty cases. First, Our Lady of Guadalupe School v. Morrissey-Berru expanded the so-called ministerial exception beyond the scope of Hosannah Tabor v. EEOC. Justice Alito did little to stifle retirement rumors with his citation in Footnote 16 to The Benedict Option. Second, Little Sisters of the Poor Saints Peter and Paul Home v. Pennsylvania narrowly upheld the Trump administration's efforts to rescind the Obama-era contraception mandate. The Justices did not consider the underlying RFRA issue that has been simmering for the last 7 years. But that case is far from over. (I have edited these cases for the Barnett/Blackman supplement; please let me know if you'd like a copy: josh-at-joshblackman-dot-com).

On the penultimate day of Overtime July, the Court gave us Religious Liberty Wednesday. I always wonder how the Court decides to pair cases. The fact that both cases today went to the right tells me that the remaining cases go against Trump tomorrow.

Tax Return Thursday is on deck!