Seyfarth Synopsis: In Biel v. St. James School, the Ninth Circuit once again split from other circuit courts, this time by narrowly construed an affirmative defense known as the “ministerial exception” that bars claims of...more
In its 2012 Hosanna-Tabor decision, the U.S. Supreme Court recognized a “ministerial” exemption to federal civil rights laws. It allows religious employers – without being subjected to claims of discrimination – to make...more
Can an organist really be considered a church minister? In a detailed and unique opinion, an Illinois federal court applied the First Amendment’s religious clauses to a church employee who claimed he had been discriminated...more