Religious Law

Christian group sues Southern Poverty Law Center over hate-group designation

Updated: A conservative Christian group claims it was defamed by the Southern Poverty Law Center’s placement of the ministry on its “hate map” for “anti-LGBT” views. The federal suit by Fort Lauderdale, Florida-based Coral Ridge Ministries Media, also known as D. James Kennedy Ministries, also targets Amazon for its exclusion…

Aug 24, 2017 1:25 PM CDT

Nonreligious anti-abortion groups have to comply with ACA’s contraceptive mandate, 3rd Circuit rules

An anti-abortion group unaffiliated with any religious group has to comply with the contraceptive coverage mandate in the Affordable Care Act, a federal appeals court has ruled. The Philadelphia-based 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled (PDF) on Friday that secular groups can’t obtain a religious exemption to the law,…

Aug 7, 2017 3:01 PM CDT

Supreme Court rules for church that wanted state grant to resurface playground

The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that a church's free-exercise rights were violated when it was denied a state grant to resurface its playground because it was a religious institution.

Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. wrote the majority opinion (PDF) in a case brought by Trinity Lutheran Church of Columbia, Missouri.

Jun 26, 2017 9:15 AM CDT

Supreme Court to decide case of baker who refused to make wedding cake for gay couple

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday agreed to decide whether a Colorado nondiscrimination law violated the constitutional rights of a Christian bakery owner who refused to make a wedding cake for a gay couple.

Jun 26, 2017 8:50 AM CDT

5th Circuit tosses challenge to Mississippi’s controversial religious freedom law

A federal appeals court ruled on Thursday that LGBT activists and other plaintiffs don’t have standing to challenge a controversial Mississippi law that allows businesses to deny marriage-related services to same-sex couples. The New Orleans-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reversed a federal judge who had blocked the law,…

Jun 23, 2017 10:58 AM CDT

Jay Sekulow, evangelical lawyer new to Trump’s team, appears to contradict himself in TV interview

Jay Sekulow, who made a career as a litigator for evangelical legal groups, had a rough time in a television interview on Sunday after he joined President Donald Trump’s legal team. Sekulow told interviewer Chris Wallace on Fox News Sunday that Trump was just commenting on news reports when he…

Jun 20, 2017 10:18 AM CDT

Trump tweets say DOJ shouldn’t have submitted ‘watered down’ version of travel ban to Supreme Court

Updated: In a series of tweets on Monday morning, President Donald Trump criticized the Justice Department for submitting a “watered down” version of his travel ban to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Jun 5, 2017 8:43 AM CDT

Justice Department asks Supreme Court to reinstate travel ban

The U.S. Justice Department late on Thursday asked the U.S. Supreme Court to reinstate President Donald Trump's temporary ban on travel to the United States by people from six Muslim-majority countries.

Jun 2, 2017 9:24 AM CDT

Trump’s travel ban ‘drips with religious intolerance,’ says en banc appeals court; injunction sticks

Updated: An en banc federal appeals court on Thursday affirmed a nationwide injunction blocking President Donald Trump’s revised travel ban from taking effect. The Richmond, Virginia-based 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in a 10-3 decision (PDF).

May 25, 2017 1:39 PM CDT

Lawyer challenging revised travel ban before 9th Circuit notes change on Trump website

A lawyer who is representing the state of Hawaii in a challenge to President Donald Trump’s revised travel ban pointed to the president’s campaign website in arguments Monday before the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. In a hearing before a three-judge panel in Seattle, lawyer Neal Katyal…

May 15, 2017 4:12 PM CDT

DOJ lawyer tells 4th Circuit that Trump’s travel order ‘is not a Muslim ban’

Judges on the Richmond, Virginia-based 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals had tough questions for the acting solicitor general Monday as the en banc court considered President Donald Trump’s revised travel ban.

May 9, 2017 8:59 AM CDT

Trump signs executive order relaxing IRS ban on political activity by tax-exempt churches

Updated: President Donald Trump signed an executive order Thursday that directs the Internal Revenue Service to exercise restraint when enforcing restrictions on political activity by tax-exempt churches and charities.

May 4, 2017 12:45 PM CDT

Case challenging gay-conversion therapy ban won’t be heard by SCOTUS

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to take up a Christian minister’s challenge to a California law banning gay-conversion therapy for changing the sexual orientation of minors, Reuters reports. The 2012 statute noted that homosexuality is not a disease and that gay conversion therapy is harmful. The San Francisco-based…

May 1, 2017 3:25 PM CDT

Church police force would get law enforcement powers under bill approved by Alabama Senate

The Alabama Senate on Tuesday approved a bill that would allow a church in Birmingham to establish its own police force. The bill would allow Briarwood Presbyterian Church to hire police with all the powers of state law enforcement officers, provided that they meet training requirements, report NPR, AL.com and…

Apr 12, 2017 3:57 PM CDT

Is church is entitled to state aid to buy playground covering?

Trinity Lutheran Church v. Pauley, which the U.S. Supreme Court will hear today, involves a church’s challenge to Missouri officials’ decision to turn down its application to a state program providing money for playgrounds to install safe, rubberized ground coverings.

Apr 1, 2017 3:00 AM CDT