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
12/16/2019
/ Appeals ,
Equal Protection ,
Free Exercise Clause ,
Municipalities ,
Religious Discrimination ,
Religious Institutions ,
Religious Schools ,
RLUIPA ,
School Sports ,
Substantial Burden ,
Zoning Laws
Last week, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit reversed a lower court’s decision dismissing a church’s religious discrimination claims. ...more
Yesterday, the Supreme Court issued its highly anticipated decision in Trump v. Hawaii, 585 U.S. ___ (2018) regarding Presidential Proclamation No. 9645, otherwise known as the “Travel Ban.” ...more
6/27/2018
/ Appeals ,
Establishment Clause ,
Foreign Nationals ,
Immigration and Nationality Act ,
Immigration Reform ,
Likelihood of Success ,
Muslims ,
National Origin Discrimination ,
Presidential Decrees ,
Reversal ,
SCOTUS ,
Travel Ban ,
Trump Administration ,
Trump v Hawaii
Yesterday, the Supreme Court issued an important decision in Lozman v. City of Riviera Beach, Florida, 585 U.S. ___ (2018). The case does not involve land use or even free exercise of religion. ...more
6/19/2018
/ 42 U.S.C. §1983 ,
Appeals ,
City Councils ,
Free Speech ,
Lozman v City of Riviera Beach Florida ,
Popular ,
Private Right of Action ,
Probable Cause ,
Public Comment ,
Retaliation ,
Retaliatory Arrests ,
Reversal ,
SCOTUS
The United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit recently affirmed the lower court’s decision dismissing an Establishment Clause challenge over the approval of a religious center. ...more
A federal court in Maryland has found that a rabbi was without standing to bring claims under RLUIPA’s nondiscrimination and equal terms provisions, since those claims can be brought only by an “assembly” or “institution.” ...more
Do 1,400 cattle and 17.4 million gallons of cow waste in open-air lagoons, upwind and a half a mile from a religious youth summer camp, impose a substantial burden? As unpleasant as a concentrated animal feed operation...more
What do a prisoner in administrative segregation, an MP3 player, an audio version of the Bible, and earbud headphones have to do with defending local governments in RLUIPA claims? Read on....more
Earlier this month, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit upheld a district court’s issuance of a temporary restraining order prohibiting the enforcement of Executive Order 13769 – “Protecting The Nation From...more
2/21/2017
/ Appeals ,
Burwell v Hobby Lobby ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Discrimination ,
Due Process ,
Equal Protection ,
Establishment Clause ,
Executive Orders ,
First Amendment ,
Foreign Nationals ,
Free Exercise Clause ,
Government Investigations ,
Immigrants ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Political Campaigns ,
Refugees ,
Religious Discrimination ,
Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) ,
Restraining Orders ,
RLUIPA ,
Travel Ban ,
Trump Administration
Recently, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals entered an order upholding the district court’s decision in the case of Tearpock-Martini v. Shickshinny Borough, which we reported on last summer. The case involved an...more
The Missouri Court of Appeals has ruled that the Kansas City, Missouri, Board of Adjustment abused its discretion in failing to grant a variance to Antioch Community Church (Church) to install digital components into its...more
1/16/2017
/ Appeals ,
Commercial Speech ,
First Amendment ,
Free Speech ,
Religious Discrimination ,
Religious Displays ,
Religious Expression ,
Religious Institutions ,
RLUIPA ,
Variances ,
Zoning Laws
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit recently upheld the convictions of two ministers of the Hawaii Cannabis Ministry who admitted using and distributing large quantities of cannabis in accordance with their...more
6/22/2016
/ Appeals ,
Churches ,
Controlled Substances ,
Controlled Substances Act ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
First Amendment ,
Marijuana ,
Religious Discrimination ,
Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) ,
Religious Institutions ,
RLUIPA ,
Young Lawyers
In a decision that should be of interest to many of our readers, the Sixth Circuit has affirmed a federal district court’s ruling that an ordinance in the City of St. Johns, Michigan (City) prohibiting the use of charitable...more
In an important decision for local governments, the Illinois Appellate Court on March 6, 2015 issued its decision in Joan Dachs Bais Yaakov Elementary School (“JDBY”) v. City of Evanston. The decision, particularly the...more
Temple B’Nai Zion and the City of Sunny Isles Beach, Florida have settled their four-plus years of litigation over the Temple’s appeal of the City’s historic site designation of property owned by the Temple and used as a...more