7th Circuit Dismisses Church Music Director's ADEA Claim

The U.S. Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals yesterday dismissed an age discrimination suit brought by the 50-year old music director and organist employed by a Roman Catholic Church in Peoria, Illinois and by the Peoria Diocese. In an interesting decision by Judge Richard Posner, the court in Tomic v. Catholic Diocese of Peoria (7th Cir., April 4, 2006) invoked the principle that courts will not exercise jurisdiction over the internal affairs of religious organizations when it would involve courts in deciding ecclesiastical matters. Rejecting the argument that Tomic did not have religious duties, the court said that moving ahead with the case would involve the court in deciding whether Tomic was dismissed because of church needs rooted in church doctrine, or whether that was a pretext for age discrimination. The court also rejected the Second Circuit's recent holding that the Religious Freedom Restoration Act intended to substitute its standard of review for the traditional ministerial exception in ADEA cases. He said that RFRA applies only to cases in which the government is a party.