Friday, October 02, 2026

Hegseth Announces Creation of Military Office of Religious Affairs

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Earlier this week, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth delivered his State of the Force Address ( full text ). Among his announcement in the Addr...

Supreme Court Grants Review in RLUIPA "Substantial Burden" Case Involving Denial of Zoning Variance for a Grotto

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The U.S. Supreme Court yesterday granted review in Missionaries of St. John, Inc. v. Frederic,  (Docket No.25-1131, certiorari  granted 10/1...

Government's Allegations of Confrontations Near Synagogue Did Not Adequately Allege FACE Act Violations

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In United States v. Party for Socialism and Liberation New Jersey ,  (D NJ, Sept. 30, 2026), a New Jersey federal district court dismissed w...
Thursday, October 01, 2026

Church Autonomy Doctrine Is Not Broader Than Ministerial Exception in Title VII Cases

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In Ference v. Roman Catholic Diocese of Greensburg ,  (WD PA, Sept. 30, 2026), a Pennsylvania federal district court refused to dismiss a Ti...

Requiring Foster Parents to Affirm Child's Religious Beliefs That They Reject Violates 1st Amendment

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In McIntire v. Senn ,  ((WD WA, Sept. 29, 2026), a Washington federal district court refused to require Washington's Department of Child...
Wednesday, September 30, 2026

New York Mayor Releases Strategy to Combat Antisemitism

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New York City Mayor Zohran Mandani released a 33-page report ( full text ) titled Tackling Hate: The Mamdani Administration's Strategy t...

9th Circuit Refuses En Banc Review of Decision Allowing Transfer of Apache Holy Area to Copper Mining Company

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In the long-running litigation over the transfer of 2500 acres of National Forest land that includes Apache ceremonial religious ground to R...

Employer's Religious Refusal to Cover Gender Dysphoria in Its Health Plan May Violate Title VII, But Not ADA

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In Bernier v. Turbocam, Inc. , (D NH, Sept. 28, 2026), Lillian Bernier, a transgender woman, sued her employer because the company refused t...
Tuesday, September 29, 2026

Court Rejects Religious Challenge to Nebraska's Ban on Midwives Attending Home Births

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In Tvrdy v. Hilgers ,  (D NE, Sept. 26, 2026), a Nebraska federal district court upheld a state law prohibiting certified nurse midwives (CN...

Ohio Legislators Lack Standing to Claim Reproductive Rights Amendment to State Constitution Is Invalid

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In Dean v. Yost ,  (OH Com. Pl., Sept. 22, 2026), two members of the Ohio state legislature and a city council member sued contending that t...

North Dakota Supreme Court Upholds State's Ban on Gender-Affirming Care for Minors

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In T.D. v. Wrigley ,  (ND Sup. Ct., Sept. 17, 2026), the North Dakota Supreme Court rejected a facial attack on North Dakota's ban of bo...
Monday, September 28, 2026

6th Circuit: Tennessee's Ban on Recruiting a Minor to Obtain an Abortion Is Unconstitutional

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In Welty v. Dunaway , (6th Cir. Sept. 24, 2026), the U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals in a 2-1 decision held unconstitutional both as appli...

Recent Articles of Interest

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From SSRN: Northon Salomão De Oliveira, Constitutional Agnosticism: The Secular State, Epistemic Abstention, and the Legal Impossibility of ...

Ohio Pastor's Conviction for Fire Code Violations Reversed and Remanded

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In State of Ohio v. Avell ,  (OH App., Sept. 25, 2026), an Ohio state appellate court reversed the criminal conviction of Christopher Avell,...
Friday, September 25, 2026

Justice Department Brief Says Johnson Amendment Violates Church Autonomy Doctrine When Applied to Sermons

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As previously reported , a Texas federal district, citing the Tax Anti-Injunction Act, refused to enter a consent judgment in a suit by reli...

Oklahoma Cannot Require State-Funded Charter Schools to Be Secular

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In National Ben Gamla Jewish Charter School Foundation v. Shellem , (WD OK, Sept. 24, 2026) , an Oklahoma federal district court issued a pr...
Thursday, September 24, 2026

Dispute Over Access to A Rabbinical Court Lands on Supreme Court's Shadow Docket

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Last week, an Emergency Application ( full text ) was filed with the U.S. Supreme Court seeking a stay pending appellate review in Strulovic...

Homeschooling Parent Sues Over Discrimination Against Religious Homeschooling Materials

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Oregon's Hillsboro School District has a Homeschooling Partnership program that, among other things, reimburses homeschooling parents fo...

Injunction Pending Appeal Denied in Challenge to Maine's Vaccination Requirement for School Children

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As previously reported , earlier this month a Maine federal district court rejected free exercise and Establishment Clause challenges to Mai...