The Religion Law Quiz Podcast

Religion Law Quiz #88

In Fulton v. City of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 141 S. Ct. 1868, 1878 (2021) the regulations adopted by Philadelphia “incorporates a system of individual exemptions, made available in this case at the ‘sole discretion’ of the Commissioner. The City has made clear that the Commissioner ‘has no intention of granting an exception’ to” Catholic Social Services.  Id. (citations omitted).  Was the City of Philade...

Religion Law Quiz #87

Today’s Religion Law Quiz is definitely a tougher one.  Let’s see how you do. 

In Fulton v. City of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania the Supreme Court stated that “Government fails to act neutrally when it proceeds in a manner intolerant of religious beliefs or restricts practices because of their religious nature.”  141 S. Ct. 1868, 1877 (2021).  The Supreme Court then went on to identify two specific guideline...

Religion Law Quiz #86

In Fulton v. City of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Catholic Social Services urged the Supreme Court to overrule Employment Division, Department of Human Resources of Oregon v. Smith, 494 U.S. 872, 110 S.Ct. 1595, 108 L.Ed.2d 876 (1990).  As you may recall, “Smith held that laws incidentally burdening religion are ordinarily not subject to strict scrutiny under the Free Exercise Clause so long as they are neutr...

The issue in Fulton v. City of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 141 S. Ct. 1868, 1874 (2021) was whether the “the actions of Philadelphia violate the First Amendment.”  By way of background, “Catholic Social Services [“CSS”] is a foster care agency in Philadelphia. The City stopped referring children to CSS upon discovering that the agency would not certify same-sex couples to be foster parents due to its religious beliefs about marriag...

Neither Ronnie nor Janet are attorneys but they are keenly interested about federal law regarding religion.  Where can Ronnie or Janet go if they want to find quick helpful resources about federal religion law? 

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Answer: One good place to start is at the Department of Justice’s publications page found at https://www.justice.gov/crt/publications which has several helpful publications on the following ...

Religion Law Quiz ## 82 and 83 are closely related.  As you’ll recall, in Religion Law Quiz $82 we learned that the Montana Supreme Court erred in its analysis in Espinoza v. Montana Dep't of Revenue by applying state law first instead of federal law.  Supreme Court’s reasoning was based on the Supremacy Clause.  In very succinct terms, how does the Supremacy Clause apply to State Court judges? 

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Ans...

Religion Law Quizzes #82 and #83 are closely related and they (particularly Religion Law Quiz #83) highlight some really important foundational legal principles in federalism form of government.  So, with that in mind, let’s see how you do. 

In Espinoza v. Montana Dep’t of Revenue, the Montana Supreme Court had entirely invalidated a scholarship program because the Montana Supreme Court believed it violated the Constitution’s “no...

A state passes a law which, in the view of the state, protects the religious liberty of taxpayers by ensuring that their taxes are not directed to religious organizations (because the law specifically prohibits any religious institution from receiving state aid), and the law safeguards the freedom of religious organizations by keeping the government out of their operations.  Does the law pass constitutional muster? 

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True or False: The protections of the Free Exercise Clause depend on a judgment-by-judgment analysis regarding whether discrimination against religious adherents would somehow serve ill-defined interests?

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Answer: False.  Here’s what the Supreme Court said in this regard three years ago: “The protections of the Free Exercise Clause do not depend on a ‘judgment-by-judgment analysis’ regarding whether ...

As attorneys we talk about doing pro bono work.  But guess what?  The universe doesn’t revolve around us. <<<Yes, I realize that last sentence is a hard pill to swallow.  😊>>>  Non-attorneys can also play an important role.  How can non-attorneys help with pro bono work?

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Answer:  Here is a list of possible things non-attorneys can do to help promote pro bono work:  

—Educate you...

In Espinoza v. Montana Dep't of Revenue, 140 S. Ct. 2246 (2020), the Montana Department of Revenue sought to distinguish that case from the Supreme Court’s Trinity Lutheran decision a few years earlier by arguing that “Trinity Lutheran does not govern here because the no-aid provision applies not because of the religious character of the recipients, but because of how the funds would be used—for ‘religious education.’”  Id. at 2255...

True or False: The Establishment Clause is not offended when religious observers and organizations benefit from neutral government programs. 

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Answer: True.  Here’s what the Supreme said in that regard three years ago:

The Religion Clauses of the First Amendment provide that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.” We have recog...

If a State wants to create even greater separation between church and State than is already ensured under the U.S. Constitution is there any limitation on the State in doing this?   

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Answer: Yes.  The State’s actions are limited by the Free Exercise clause.  Consider what the Supreme Court said in this regard in 2020. 

The Montana Supreme Court asserted that the no-aid provision serves Montana's i...

Can you believe we are up to Religion Law Quiz #75?  What a milestone?  In honor of that milestone today’s quiz focuses on a key concept that is critically important to many constitutional rights. 

How does the government satisfy “strict scrutiny”? 

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Answer: Here’s how the Supreme Court answered that question three years ago. 

Strict scrutiny “is not ‘watered down but really means what it says,’ ...

Today's episode is part-10 of a multi-part series about what you can to do help protect and foster respect for religious freedom.  One thing we can all do is pray for God's guidance about what we should do and then have the courage to act on the direction we receive.  

Below is a list of the prior past nine episodes about what regular, run-of-the-mill people can do to defend and foster respect for religious freedom.

Quiz #50 (Part ...

April is Spring and that means softball season.  So in honor of that, let’s throw up a softball quiz that you can knock out of the park! 

Religion Law Quiz #56 talked about Lemon v. Kurtzman, 403 U. S. 602, 91 S.Ct. 2105, 29 L.Ed.2d 745 (1971).  In 2022 there was a Supreme Court decision which many people viewed as noting that the Lemon analysis is dead.  What was that decision? 

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Answer: Kennedy v...

Religion Law Quiz #71 talked about ethical Rule 6.5 and limited scope representation when doing pro bono work.  What are examples of limited scope representation? 

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Answer: Examples of limited scope representation include (but are not limited to) the following:

—Providing information

—Giving brief advice and referral

—Drafting simple contracts

—Filling out forms

—Drafting court documents

—Assisting...

Rhonda has heard a lot of passionate arguments about the recently passed Respect for Marriage Act.  Rhonda wants to rise above culture war bickering and get a more objective understanding of the Act and its potential ramifications.  Where should Rhonda turn to find more information on this important topic? 

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Answer: Rhonda should consider studying the forthcoming law review article co-authored by Dou...

For the moment, this is the last part of our sub-series about what regular, run-of-the-mill people can do to help create respect for religious freedom and to also protect and defend it.  The simple answer is: Get Involved!  Don’t just preach to the choir.  Role up your sleeves.  Go to work.  Find an organization that is involved in the community and volunteer.  This might mean becoming a member of a board or commission for a state ...