Suit Challenges Virginia Fair Housing Act Provision Barring Religious Language In Ads

Suit was filed in a Virginia state trial court yesterday challenging a provision in the state's Fair Housing Code which provides that advertisements using "words or symbols associated with a particular religion.... shall be prima facie evidence of an illegal preference under this chapter which shall not be overcome by a general disclaimer." The complaint (full text) in Carter v. Virginia Real Estate Board, (VA Cir. Ct., filed 8/14/2019) contends that realtor Hadassah Hubbard Carter's free exercise, free speech and due process rights were infringed when the Virginia Real Estate Board claimed that she had violated the Fair Housing Code by use of a religious phrase in her e-mail signature line, and a Biblical quotation and a recitation of her religious beliefs on her business website. ACLJ issued a press release announcing the filing of the lawsuit.