The U.S. 4th Circuit Court of Appeals on Wednesday heard oral arguments (audio of full oral arguments) in Billard v. Charlotte Catholic High School. In the case, a North Carolina federal district court held that a Catholic high school is liable under Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act for firing a substitute drama teacher after he entered a same-sex marriage and stated on Facebook his disagreement with Catholic teaching on marriage. (See prior posting.) As reported by Reuters, during oral argument the judges pressed the parties on the applicability of the ministerial exception doctrine, even though the school had stipulated that it would not raise the doctrine as a defense in order to avoid protracted discovery on the teacher's job duties.
