Saturday, November 23, 2019

Supreme Court Grants Review In RFRA Damages Case

The U.S Supreme Court yesterday granted certiorari in Tanzin v. Tanvir. (Docket No.19-71, cert. granted 11/22/2019). In the case, a 3-judge panel of the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals held that under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, a plaintiff may sue federal officials in their individual capacities and may recover monetary damages from them. The holding comes in a lawsuit by three Muslims who claim that their names were placed on the "No Fly List" in retaliation for their refusal to serve as government informants. (See prior posting.) By a vote of 7-3, the 2nd Circuit denied en banc review. (See prior posting.) The SCOTUSblog case page has links to the fiilngs with the Supreme Court in the case.