Tag: schools

7th Cir: Notre Dame must submit form to avoid paying for contraceptives

The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the denial of Notre Dame’s request for court-ordered exception to the contraception mandate under the Affordable Care Act. The case had returned from the Supreme Court after the high court decided Hobby Lobby v. Sebelius. Find the decision here.

Judge Richard Posner wrote the forty-page majority opinion, with Judge David Hamilton writing a concurrence. Judge Joel Flaum dissented. Continue reading “7th Cir: Notre Dame must submit form to avoid paying for contraceptives” →

Seventh Circuit dismisses appeal, allowing Catholic teacher’s in vitro fertilization suit to go forward

This post is being published on both Law Meets Gospel and Indiana Education Law Blog.

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Fort Wayne–South Bend’s appeal from an order denying summary judgment in a lawsuit brought by a former teacher suing the diocese for firing her because she became pregnant through in vitro fertilization was dismissed by a decision. In the unanimous decision written by Judge Diane S. Sykes, the Seventh Circuit held that the appeal was filed too early because the summary-judgment order was not final. Continue reading “Seventh Circuit dismisses appeal, allowing Catholic teacher’s in vitro fertilization suit to go forward” →

U.S. Supreme Court Denies German Homeschoolers’ Appeal

This post is being published on both Law Meets Gospel and Indiana Education Law Blog.


The United States Supreme Court has rejected a petition filed by a German family seeking asylum based on what they characterize as religious persecution in their home country. The Romeike family began homeschooling their children because they feared the public school’s curriculum would influence their children in a way that contradicted their Christian values. This violated a 1938 compulsory-attendance law in Germany that the Romeikes argued was originally driven by animus toward faith-based homeschoolers. Continue reading “U.S. Supreme Court Denies German Homeschoolers’ Appeal” →

Indiana Supreme Court considering homeschoolers’ appeal

This post is being published on both Law Meets Gospel and Indiana Education Law Blog.

On February  3, the Indiana Supreme Court heard arguments in Fishers Adolescent Catholic Enrichment Society, Inc. v. Bridgewater. (See earlier coverage here and here.) The case involves an organization formed by homeschooling Roman Catholic parents. The group’s purposes include providing students with Catholic educational, spiritual, and social enrichment. The Court will decide whether the group’s decisions about accommodating a student’s dietary needs and later expelling her for filing a complaint fall within state antidiscrimination laws and First Amendment protections for religious organizations. Continue reading “Indiana Supreme Court considering homeschoolers’ appeal” →

Sotomayor Rings in New Year with Obamacare Stay: What Religious Groups Should Know

Justice Sonia Sotomayor made sure she was part of the number one story to start off
2014. In case anyone doubted leading New York City’s countdown to 2014 in Times
Square would put Sotomayor on the front page, a few hours before midnight she
temporarily blocked the federal government from requiring certain religiously
affiliated organizations to provide insurance coverage that includes birth
control. Continue reading “Sotomayor Rings in New Year with Obamacare Stay: What Religious Groups Should Know” →

Teacher Files Suit after Roman Catholic School Fires Her for IVF Treatment

CNN reports that a teacher who was fired after receiving fertility treatments has sued the St. Vincent de Paul and the Diocese of Fort Wayne–South Bend. This could be a test of the United States Supreme Court’s recent decision Hosanna-Tabor Evangelical Lutheran Church and School v. EEOC, which held that a teacher could not sue after being fired for threatening to bring suit against the school against church teachings because the teacher fell within the definition of minister.

Indianapolis TV station WRTV has coverage here.

The Huffington Post has a very good story here.
The Indiana Law Blog posts the complaint here.