Religion & Law

Levi?s joining to defeat Calif. Prop. 8, marriage amendment

Posted on September 26, 2008
The AP reports: The San Francisco-based jeans maker said Thursday it will co-chair with Pacific Gas & Electric a group trying to drum up opposition to Proposition 8 in the business community . . . Levi Strauss has pledged $25,000 to Equality for All, the coalition leading the No on 8 campaign, says company spokesman E...

Florida Judge ignores the law, allows homosexual adoption

Posted on September 26, 2008
The Miami Herald has this report: Last month, a Monroe Circuit judge became only the second judge in Florida history to allow a gay man or lesbian to adopt a child. Smith’s may be a pyrrhic victory. Though Circuit Judge David John Audlin, Jr.’s order will stand, it likely will hold little sway over future cases, scholars [...

Philip P. Simon Nominated to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit

Posted on September 26, 2008
The White House has issued this press release and IndyStar.com carries this report: Indiana judge nominated for appeals court. Hat tip: How Appealing Visit Site » Share This

Pastor Gus Booth on The Takeaway: ?The Gospel needs to be preached in all areas of life and politics is one of those areas?

Posted on September 26, 2008
Pastor Gus Booth, Pastor Eric Williams, and Law Professor Marci Hamilton all appear on The Takeaway public radio to discuss ADF’s Pulpit Initiative with John Hackenberry The mp3 file is here and it runs just under 11 minutes. Visit Site » Share This

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Law Review Editing by Student-Run Law Reviews

Posted on September 26, 2008
Eugene Volokh offers several suggestions on the Volokh Conspiracy in response to this question from a law review editor: I am curious to know your thoughts on the amount of editing you think a law review should do because my primary concern when editing is infringing on the author’s style (as noted in the comments to [...

Will IVF replace natural conception?

Posted on September 26, 2008
This Intelligent Life Magazine article titled, The IVF Revolution: Life on Ice, contends: “‘Soon, IVF may be better than natural conception for many, perhaps most, couples, not just those who can’t make babies the usual way’”, writes Helen Joyce...

NY Supreme Court Justice: ?Rights and Recognition for Same-Sex Marriage?

Posted on September 26, 2008
Emily Jane Goodman, a NY State Supreme Court Justice, has this commentary in the Gotham Gazette discussing New York’s Marriage Litigation. She mentions Briam Raum of ADF. Visit Site » Share This

California Parental Notification on Abortion Measure Gets Boost in Second Poll

Posted on September 26, 2008
LifeNews.com reports: “The second poll in as many days shows a plurality of California voters support Proposition 4, a ballot measure that would allow parents to know when their minor daughters are considering an abortion. The measure draws the support of 49 percent of California residents thanks in part to Latino voters...

Catholic Hospital Group Says Abortion Pressures Means HHS Rule Needed

Posted on September 26, 2008
LifeNews.com reports: ” On the last day for public comments about the proposed rule to enforce the laws protecting medical staff and centers from doing abortions, a Catholic hospital [...]

En Banc Review Sought From 10th Circuit In Las Cruces Decision

Posted on September 26, 2008
The Religion Clause Blog reports that a petition for en banc review has been filed in the Las Cruces, New Mexico case involving the display of a cross on the city seal and in a school logo. An earlier panel ruling dismissed the Establishment Clause challenge...

Luck of the Draw? On the Fairness of Charter School Admissions Policies

Posted on September 26, 2008
The National Center for the Study of Privatization in Education Teacher’s College, Columbia University has issued this report: 165. Luck of the Draw? On the Fairness of Charter School Admissions Policies. 2008. Author: Jonathan R. Dolle and Anne Newman This paper examines the fairness of charter school admissions lotteries from a philosophical perspective, with a focus on [...

Michigan: Agency omits ads containing Bible verse

Posted on September 26, 2008
OneNewsNow.com reports: “Can religious views be silenced in public advertising? The Alliance Defense Fund is pursuing an answer in Michigan. The case involves a Christian couple advertising their legal advocacy services for people turned down for unemployment benefits...

Washington: Mother can pursue lawsuit over harvest of son?s brain

Posted on September 26, 2008
The Seattle Post-Intelligencer reports: The Supreme Court said state law, at the time of Smith’s death, required that undesignated organs go to hospitals, and that Stanley Medical wasn’t an authorized recipient. The justices affirmed the dismissal of some of Adams’ claims, including allegations of fraud and invasion of privacy, but allowed her to pursue claims of conspiracy [...

Justice Alito opts out of the ?Cert. Pool?

Posted on September 26, 2008
The NY Times reports: Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. is getting out of the pool . . . Only Justice John Paul Stevens has declined to participate. He relies on his own clerks to help cull perhaps 80 worthy cases from the thousands of appeals, called petitions for certiorari, that reach the court each year...

?Ministers to Defy I.R.S. by Endorsing Candidates?

Posted on September 26, 2008
?I?m planning to make a recommendation. I?m going to evaluate each candidate?s positions in light of Scripture and make a recommendation to my congregation as to which candidate aligns more so.?

County abortion regulations scrutinized in Indiana

Posted on September 26, 2008
USA Today reports: Abortion opponents in Indiana are encouraging passage of regulations at the county level that abortion-rights groups say might be the leading edge of a nationwide effort to limit access to the procedure. Two Indiana counties have passed ordinances that require doctors who perform abortions to have the authority to admit patients at local hospitals...

Part 4 - Tax laws and religious speech: what the Constitution says

Posted on September 26, 2008
Today's question: Does the Constitution have anything to say about the relationship between federal tax law and political speech by clergy?

Unmarried opposite-sex couples claim discrimination

Posted on September 26, 2008
The Press Enterprise carries this report: Michael Imel wants to put his girlfriend on his health-insurance policy. But the Bermuda Dunes man’s employer declined his request because the couple is not married. To Thomas Coleman, Imel’s case exemplifies how unmarried people face pervasive discrimination under federal, state and local laws...

ACLU wages war against school choice

Posted on September 25, 2008
"For the third time, the American Civil Liberties Union has challenged Arizona's school choice program. The law permits private corporations to dedicate part of their tax liability for tuition scholarships at religious or other private schools. "

Britain Plans To End Exclusion of Catholics From Monarchy

Posted on September 25, 2008
The Religion Clause Blog reports: “London’s Guardian and AFP today report that Britain’s Labour government has drawn up proposals to amend the country’s 300-year ban on Catholics serving as monarch.” Visit Site » Share This

The Judge Says: Don?t Get Pregnant. A Lapsed Law Now Sees New Life

Posted on September 25, 2008
Dan Slater has this article in the Wall Street Journal.  He writes: . . . in 1942, the Supreme Court struck down Oklahoma’s Habitual Criminal Sterilization Act, declaring that “marriage and procreation are fundamental to the very existence and survival of the race...

Moonlighting Lawyers Tackle Their School Debt

Posted on September 25, 2008
Julie Kay has this report on the National Law Journal. She writes: Griffin’s schedule may be grueling, but the 27-year-old says it’s necessary to pay off his $70,000 law school loan, save up for a house and simply make ends meet as the cost of living skyrockets...

Virginia: State police chaplains resign over prayer restrictions

Posted on September 25, 2008
The Richmond Times-Dispatch reports: “At least five members of the Virginia State Police chaplains program have resigned after being told they must abstain from praying in the name of Jesus or Christ during department-sanctioned events involving the public...

LA Times: ?Pastors plan to defy IRS ban on political speech?

Posted on September 25, 2008
"The bottom line is that churches and pastors have a right to speak freely from the pulpit," said Dale Schowengerdt, a defense fund attorney working on the project. "They should not be intimidated into silence by unconstitutional IRS regulations or rules...

Google Guy?s Words Get Quick Response on the Hill - Free the Airwaves Spectrum

Posted on September 25, 2008
The Washington Post reports: “Google co-founder Larry Page turned up on Capitol Hill today to boost the company’s ‘Free the Airwaves’ campaign, and he had some strong words for those who oppose their bid to open more of the airwaves for high speed Internet access...

DHHS: Should a Physician?s Conscience be Penalized?

Posted on September 25, 2008
Family Voice, the blog of the Family Policy Council of West Virginia has this post that begins: At this point in our nation?s history, it is axiomatic to say that we enjoy a freedom of religion. Yet, at times one wonders just how far that freedom reaches...

Florida: Minority pastors rally in Tampa to support Amendment 2

Posted on September 25, 2008
TampaBay.com reports: “A group of black and Latino pastors pledged Wednesday to rally support among their congregations for Amendment 2, the measure that would essentially ban gay marriage in Florida.” Visit Site » Share This

Poll: Same-sex marriage ban not wooing voters

Posted on September 25, 2008
Opponents of a ban on same-sex marriage have the upper hand in a new poll by the Public Policy Institute of California, but the numbers also suggest that the third time may be a charm for Proposition 4, which requires notification of a parent or relative before a minor can receive an abortion ...

McCain urged to be more vocal on marriage amendments

Posted on September 25, 2008
OneNewsNow.com reports: “A conservative Christian pastor and political activist says the revelation that John McCain’s Senate chief of staff is an open homosexual should compel the presidential hopeful and his running mate Sarah Palin to “rise up” and “unashamedly” declare their support for traditional marriage...

ADF: No permit is required to distribute religious literature at Mt. Rushmore

Posted on September 25, 2008
Alliance Defense Fund Litigation Staff Counsel Heather Gebelin Hacker will be available for media interviews Friday following a hearing on behalf of a Minnesota man prohibited from sharing his faith at Mt. Rushmore National Monument in South Dakota. ADF filed a lawsuit in federal court after the man was told he could not pass out religious literature near the entrance of the monument without a permit.

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