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Equal Protection Religious Discrimination

The Equal Protection Clause is a section of the 14th Amendment to the United States Constitution that provides that "no state shall...deny to any citizen within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the... more +
The Equal Protection Clause is a section of the 14th Amendment to the United States Constitution that provides that "no state shall...deny to any citizen within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws." Essentially, the Equal Protection Clause provides that the government must treat an individual the same way that it treats other individuals in the same circumstances. The 14th Amendment Equal Protection Clause applies only to state governments, but the requirements of the clause apply to the federal government through the Due Process Clause of the 5th Amendment. less -
Holland & Knight LLP

Religious Institutions Update: July 2024

Holland & Knight LLP on

Vaccine Exemption Policy Requiring Citation to Official Doctrine Violates First Amendment Madison Houghton and Nathan A. Adams IV In Does 1-11 v. Bd. of Regents of Univ. of Colorado, 100 F. 4th 1251 (10th Cir. 2024), former...more

Robinson+Cole RLUIPA Defense

Chicago’s Application of Parking Regulations Violates RLUIPA

In Immanuel Baptist Church v. City of Chicago, the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois recently ruled that the City of Chicago had violated the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons...more

McDermott Will & Emery

Diskriminierung im Bewerbungsprozess? Was Sie als Arbeitgeber jetzt wissen sollten

McDermott Will & Emery on

Die Ampelkoalition hat in ihrem Koalitionsvertrag die Ausweitung des Anwendungsbereichs des Allgemeinen Gleichbehandlungsgesetz (AGG) vorgesehen. Ob dies in dieser Legislaturperiode tatsächlich noch geschieht, ist fraglich....more

Robinson+Cole RLUIPA Defense

Eleventh Circuit Finds City of Mobile Violated Religious Freedom Laws

The United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit recently considered a long-running religious land use dispute involving the Thai Meditation Association of Alabama (TMAA) and the city of Mobile, Alabama. The...more

Holtzman Vogel Baran Torchinsky & Josefiak

Holtzman Vogel Supreme Court Review, October Term 2022

By: Jason Torchinsky, Ed Wenger, Jan Baran, Jonathan P. Lienhard, Kent Safriet, and David Brown The Supreme Court wrapped up its decisions from the October 2022 Term, with a blockbuster final week addressing issues like...more

Robinson+Cole RLUIPA Defense

Fourth Circuit: Church Seeking to Operate as Brewery or Farm Winery Did Not State RLUIPA Claim

The Fourth Circuit has ruled against the Alive Church of the Nazarene’s claims that Prince William County, Virginia, violated the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLIUPA) by denying the Church the...more

Robinson+Cole RLUIPA Defense

Madison, Wisconsin’s Denial of Athletic Field Lights Upheld Over Claims of Religious Discrimination

On December 30, 2022, a district court dismissed a Catholic high school’s RLUIPA challenge, granting summary judgment on all claims in favor of the City of Madison, Wisconsin and various other city officials (the City). As...more

Robinson+Cole RLUIPA Defense

Court Rules Meriden, CT’s Zoning Regulations Discriminatory

A district court has ruled that the City of Meriden, Connecticut (the City) discriminated against Omar Islamic Center Inc. following the City’s denial of the Islamic Center’s application to move its mosque to another...more

Robinson+Cole RLUIPA Defense

St. Pete Beach, Florida Enjoined from Prohibiting Church’s Beach Parking Lot Evangelism

A federal court in Florida recently ruled that Pass-A-Grille Beach Community Church, Inc. (Church) was likely to prevail on its RLUIPA substantial burden claim challenging the City of St. Pete Beach’s enforcement of parking...more

Robinson+Cole RLUIPA Defense

Baltimore County’s Zoning Code Found to Violate RLUIPA’s Equal Terms Provision

RLUIPA’s equal terms provision requires municipalities to treat religious uses no worse than analogous secular assembly uses.  Generally, if a municipality wants to either prohibit religious uses from a certain zone or...more

Robinson+Cole RLUIPA Defense

City of Kirkwood, MO Hits Homerun in Religious Baseball Field Dispute in Eighth Circuit

Last week, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit issued an important decision regarding RLUIPA’s substantial burden and equal terms provisions. ...more

Robinson+Cole RLUIPA Defense

Evangelical Church Sues Castle Hills, TX for Denying SUP for Sunday School Space

Wayside Chapel Evangelical Free Church is suing Castle Hills, Texas for denying its application for a special use permit for property located at 113 Ivywood Circle.  The Church claims that the extra space is needed to...more

Holland & Knight LLP

Religious Institutions Update: September 2019 - Lex Est Sanctio Sancta

Holland & Knight LLP on

Rehearing Denied for Elementary School Against Catholic Teacher's ADA Claim - In Biel v. St. James Sch., 926 F. 3d 1238 (9th Cir. 2019), the petition for rehearing and the petition for rehearing en banc was denied, subject...more

Robinson+Cole RLUIPA Defense

Supreme Court Refuses to Take Tree of Life RLUIPA Case

Last week, the United States Supreme Court denied Tree of Life Christian Schools’ petition for certiorari involving its longstanding religious dispute with Upper Arlington, Ohio (City). In 2009, Tree of Life purchased a...more

Robinson+Cole RLUIPA Defense

Church Ministering to Homeless/Needy Can Proceed with Most of its Religious Discrimination Claims

A United States District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee recently ruled that Layman Lessons Church and Welcome Baptist Church, Inc. (“Layman Lessons”) can move forward with most, but not all, of its religious...more

Robinson+Cole RLUIPA Defense

Chabad House for Towson University and Goucher College Files Lawsuit Alleging RLUIPA Violations Following State Court Order to...

The Chabad House for Towson University and Goucher College, pictured above, has filed a lawsuit against Baltimore County, Maryland (the “County”), following a state court order requiring demolition of a newly-constructed...more

Robinson+Cole RLUIPA Defense

Clifton, NJ Pays $2.5 Million to Settle RLUIPA Dispute

Clifton, New Jersey has agreed to pay a Jewish congregation $2.5 million and will allow it to construct a synagogue. Congregation Shomrei Torah/Tiferes Boruch asked for permission to build a synagogue 11 years ago. The...more

Robinson+Cole RLUIPA Defense

Coconut Creek, Florida Amends Zoning Code Following DOJ’s RLUIPA Investigation

Recently, the Department of Justice reported that it has closed its investigation into whether the City of Coconut Creek’s zoning code violated RLUIPA’s equal terms provision by treating secular assembly uses better than...more

Robinson+Cole RLUIPA Defense

Islamic Community Center Denied Variance Needed to Operate Mosque; Files Lawsuit Against Michigan City

Earlier this month, an Islamic community center filed suit against the City of Troy, Michigan (“City”) after the City denied the group’s application for a variance needed to operate a mosque at the property it owns in the...more

Robinson+Cole RLUIPA Defense

As-Applied Challenge to Chicago Parking Standard Survives Motion to Dismiss

“When is this Church like that Library?” The District Court for the Northern District of Illinois considered this question in its review of the City of Chicago’s motion to dismiss a RLUIPA equal terms claim brought against...more

Robinson+Cole RLUIPA Defense

Coffee Shop Church’s Claims Survive Motion to Dismiss, City Amends Code to Permit Use

A federal court in Maryland has denied the City of Laurel, Maryland’s (“City”) motion to dismiss a lawsuit brought by Redemption Community Church (“Church”). ...more

Robinson+Cole RLUIPA Defense

Church Ministering To Homeless Secures Preliminary Injunction Against St. Paul, Minn. For Likely RLUIPA And Free Speech Violations

A federal court in Minnesota has issued a preliminary injunction in favor of a local church ministering to the homeless, ruling that the church was likely to prevail on its RLUIPA substantial burden and First Amendment free...more

Robinson+Cole RLUIPA Defense

North Carolina City’s Zoning Code Amendment “At The Cross”-Road of RLUIPA Claim

Recent amendments to the zoning code of the City of Monroe, North Carolina (the “City”) are unconstitutional, according to the Complaint filed by At the Cross Fellowship Baptist Church (the “Church”), a congregation of...more

Robinson+Cole RLUIPA Defense

Federal Court Rejects Church’s Religious Land Use Claims Based on Government’s Legitimate Zoning Concerns

A federal court in Nevada has ruled that the denial of a church’s special use permit application to develop property with a house of worship did not violate RLUIPA’s substantial burden provision, the Equal Protection Clause,...more

Robinson+Cole RLUIPA Defense

Religious Land Use Controversy Brewing in Laurel, Maryland: Can a Church Worship in a Coffee Shop?

Redemption Community Church (the “Church”) has filed a federal lawsuit against the city of Laurel, Maryland (the “City”), after the City issued a cease and desist order prohibiting the Church from offering religious services...more

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