Last month, Bergen Rockland Eruv Association, Inc. (BREA) sued the Township of Mahwah, New Jersey regarding a dispute over the expansion of an eruv. According to the complaint, “[a]n eruv, under Jewish law, is a largely...more
Last year, we reported about a case in which the city of St. Michael, Minnesota utilized RLUIPA’s “safe harbor” provision to avoid liability under the act’s substantial burden and equal terms provisions. While the federal...more
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit in a 10-3 decision has affirmed a lower court’s granting of a preliminary injunction against one provision of President Trump’s second immigration ban on the ground...more
5/31/2017
/ Due Process ,
EEO-1 ,
Establishment Clause ,
Executive Orders ,
First Amendment ,
Foreign Nationals ,
Immigration Procedures ,
National Security ,
Refugees ,
Religious Discrimination ,
Travel Ban ,
Trump Administration
Earlier this month, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit upheld a district court’s issuance of a temporary restraining order prohibiting the enforcement of Executive Order 13769 – “Protecting The Nation From...more
2/21/2017
/ Appeals ,
Burwell v Hobby Lobby ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Discrimination ,
Due Process ,
Equal Protection ,
Establishment Clause ,
Executive Orders ,
First Amendment ,
Foreign Nationals ,
Free Exercise Clause ,
Government Investigations ,
Immigrants ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Political Campaigns ,
Refugees ,
Religious Discrimination ,
Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) ,
Restraining Orders ,
RLUIPA ,
Travel Ban ,
Trump Administration
Thou shall have the right to an electronic sign? Apparently not. Just over a year ago, Hillside Baptist Church and Signs for Jesus (together, Plaintiffs or Church) filed a complaint in the District Court for New Hampshire,...more
2/13/2017
/ Aesthetic Functionality ,
Article III ,
First Amendment ,
Free Exercise Clause ,
Free Speech ,
Religious Discrimination ,
Religious Displays ,
Religious Institutions ,
RLUIPA ,
Standing ,
Traffic Laws ,
Zoning Laws
Two Amish men have sued Auburn, Kentucky (population approx. 1,300) in a Kentucky state court over an ordinance requiring that horses wear equine diapers. The ordinance, passed in 2014, is intended to keep town streets clear...more
A federal court in Pennsylvania has denied Bensalem Township’s motion to dismiss a lawsuit brought by the United States Department of Justice challenging the Township’s denial of a use variance for a mosque. The lawsuit...more
Recently, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals entered an order upholding the district court’s decision in the case of Tearpock-Martini v. Shickshinny Borough, which we reported on last summer. The case involved an...more
The Missouri Court of Appeals has ruled that the Kansas City, Missouri, Board of Adjustment abused its discretion in failing to grant a variance to Antioch Community Church (Church) to install digital components into its...more
1/16/2017
/ Appeals ,
Commercial Speech ,
First Amendment ,
Free Speech ,
Religious Discrimination ,
Religious Displays ,
Religious Expression ,
Religious Institutions ,
RLUIPA ,
Variances ,
Zoning Laws
Earlier this month, the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Bloomfield, New Mexico’s installation of a Ten Commandments monument on the lawn in front of city hall violated the Establishment Clause of the First...more
Earlier this year, the Thai Meditation Association of Alabama and several individual plaintiffs (“the Center”) filed suit against the City of Mobile, Alabama (“the City”), alleging that the denial of its application to...more
In 2011, Pittsfield Charter Township denied, allegedly without deliberation, Michigan Islamic Academy’s (“MIA”) application to rezone a 26 acre parcel (the “Property”) to allow the development of a pre-K through grade 12...more
A brewing dispute in Yonkers, NY has led the Islamic Community Center for Mid Westchester (ICCMW) to allege that Yonkers violated ICCMW’s rights under RLUIPA, and the First and Fourteenth Amendments of the United States...more
The Islamic Center of Nashville (ICN) recently filed a federal complaint and request for declaratory judgment against the State of Tennessee, the Metropolitan Trustee of Nashville, and the Tennessee State Board of...more
In an important decision for municipalities across the country, a federal court in Minnesota has recently ruled that actions taken under RLUIPA’s “safe harbor” provision absolved a local government of possible RLUIPA...more
9/23/2016
/ Churches ,
Conditional Use Permit ,
First Amendment ,
Free Exercise Clause ,
Moratorium ,
Municipalities ,
Religious Discrimination ,
Religious Institutions ,
RLUIPA ,
Safe Harbors ,
Summary Judgment ,
Zoning Laws
In January of this year, Yeshiva Gedola Na’os Yaakov, Inc. (the “Yeshiva”) filed a 79-page complaint in federal court against the Township of Ocean, New Jersey, and the Township’s Zoning Board of Adjustment (the “Township)...more
9/14/2016
/ Attorney's Fees ,
Certificates of Occupancy ,
Damages ,
Educational Institutions ,
First Amendment ,
Jurisdiction ,
Mediation ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Religious Discrimination ,
Religious Institutions ,
Religious Schools ,
Reversal ,
RLUIPA ,
Variances
This summer, we reported that Genoa Charter Township prevailed in a lawsuit filed by Livingston Christian Schools (LSC), which claimed that the Township violated RLUIPA’s substantial burden provision, the First Amendment to...more
9/13/2016
/ Attorney's Fees ,
Due Process ,
Educational Institutions ,
First Amendment ,
Fourteenth Amendment ,
Religious Discrimination ,
Religious Institutions ,
Religious Schools ,
RLUIPA ,
Special Use Permit ,
Substantial Burden ,
Summary Judgment
Late last month, a federal district court in Pennsylvania ruled that directional signs to a church, which contained images of a cross and bible, did not violate the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment.
The...more
In the RLUIPA Round-Up post, we noted that the City of Sterling Heights, Michigan, is facing a federal lawsuit following its denial of the American Islamic Community Center’s (Center) zoning application to build a 20,500...more
A Massachusetts Superior Court is soon to consider the interplay of three important planning principles – historic preservation, sustainable development, and freedom of religion. A Unitarian Universalist church is suing the...more
8/1/2016
/ Churches ,
Climate Change ,
First Amendment ,
Free Exercise Clause ,
Freedom of Religion ,
Global Warming ,
Historic Preservation ,
Open Meetings Act ,
Religious Discrimination ,
Religious Institutions ,
RLUIPA ,
Solar Energy ,
Solar Panels
Guru Gobind Singh Sikh Center, Inc. (the “Temple”), on June 29, 2016 in the Eastern District of New York, sued the Town of Oyster Bay, New York, the Town Board, and several Town Officials (together, the “Defendants”) after...more
7/22/2016
/ Cause of Action Accrual ,
Environmental Review ,
First Amendment ,
Fourteenth Amendment ,
Freedom of Religion ,
Land Use Restrictions ,
Non-Discrimination Rules ,
Religious Discrimination ,
Religious Institutions ,
RLUIPA ,
SEQRA ,
Site Plans ,
Substantial Burden
A federal court in Michigan has ruled that Genoa Charter Township did not violate federal law in denying a church’s application for a special use permit to operate a religious school. Livingston Christian Schools (LSC)...more
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit recently upheld the convictions of two ministers of the Hawaii Cannabis Ministry who admitted using and distributing large quantities of cannabis in accordance with their...more
6/22/2016
/ Appeals ,
Churches ,
Controlled Substances ,
Controlled Substances Act ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
First Amendment ,
Marijuana ,
Religious Discrimination ,
Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) ,
Religious Institutions ,
RLUIPA ,
Young Lawyers
Barbara L. Yoder and Joseph I. Yoder (“Owners”) own a home in Sugar Grove Township, Pennsylvania (“Township”), which has a mandatory sewer connection ordinance (the “Ordinance”), requiring connection to the Sugar Grove Area...more
We previously reported about the federal lawsuit filed by Christian Community Chapel against the Township of Hillsborough, New Jersey, in which the Township denied the Chapel’s variance requests to use a 14.3 acre property as...more