Religion & Law

Australia: School ethics classes appear doomed at final hurdle

Posted on November 23, 2010
Sydney Morning Herald: "THE state government's plans to introduce ethics classes into primary schools are in disarray after the Coalition announced it would not support them as an alternative to scripture if it wins power next year."

2nd Circuit: Nurse can?t sue hospital that forced her to do abortion

Posted on November 23, 2010
"Today, the Second Circuit ruled that a private individual does not have a right to sue her employer after being forced to participate in an abortion."

IL: District 181 puts religious holiday calendar policy up for 30-day public review

Posted on November 23, 2010
Chicago Tribune / Hinsdale: "In response to a spate of e-mails, phone calls and face-to-face input from concerned members of the community, Hinsdale-Clarendon Hills Elementary District 181 placed its revised religious holiday calendar policy on display for the public...

Assembly pushes to oust Iran President

Posted on November 23, 2010
Wall Street Journal: "Iran's parliament revealed it planned to impeach President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad but refrained under orders from Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, exposing a deepening division within the regime."

To access this complete feed in the blog feed reader login or register for free.

Ireland: Court says baby drug administration ruling not State ?acting as a superpower?

Posted on November 23, 2010
The Iona Institute: "A judge who has given permission to the HSE to administer drugs to a baby at risk of HIV against the wishes of the mother said it was not a question of the State 'acting as a superpower' or 'nanny knows best.' The case shows once again that the law as it stands already allows the State to override the wishes of parents in certain circumstances...

Adm. Mullen supports ending DADT

Posted on November 22, 2010
CBN: "Adm. Mike Mullen, the chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, said he supports Congress using its lame-duck session to end the ban on gays serving openly in the military."

TX: Pastors ask AG for opinion on Houston transgender order

Posted on November 22, 2010
Houston Area Pastor Council: "Dear General Abbott: We would like to request a formal opinion on whether Houston Mayor Annise Parker?s Executive Order 1-8 issued in April of 2010, 'Prohibition of Discrimination Based on Sexual Orientation and/or Gender Identity' (attached), conflicts with state laws regarding the use of public restrooms by those of the opposite gender...

No ?gay? or ?sex? in Yahoo! Clues

Posted on November 22, 2010
ZDNet / Tech Broiler: "I asked, and now I?m telling: looks like Yahoo! Clues, the new keyword search and comparison tool, has a problem with the gays. Yahoo!?s new research tool Clues appears to be part of the growing trend of search giants and their tools not reporting results or returning data on sex-related keywords...

U. of Arizona may let opposite sexes room together

Posted on November 22, 2010
KTAR: "The University of Arizona is considering a pilot program that would allow students of the opposite sex to live in the same dorm room . . . 'That's completely at odds with common sense,' said [David French], senior counsel with the Alliance Defense Fund, a Scottsdale-based Christian organization that seeks to preserve family values...

Greg Baylor: Anti-bullying bill: A potential threat to Christ-centered colleges

Posted on November 22, 2010
ADF Attorney Gregory S. Baylor writing at Speak Up Movement / University: "The bill, if it became law, might threaten the freedom of Christ-centered institutions of higher education. Many of these schools forbid their students from engaging in homosexual behavior on the ground that the Bible deems it immoral...

KS: Pastor on trial for witnessing to Muslims

Posted on November 22, 2010
OneNewsNow: "A pastor in Wichita, Kansas, heads to court today to defend himself against charges involving his efforts to witness for Christ outside a mosque."

Valedictorian had right to mention ?God? and ?Christ? in address: Montana Supreme Court

Posted on November 22, 2010
LifeSiteNews: "The Montana Supreme Court has reversed a district judge?s ruling that school officials could censor a valedictorian?s speech that contained references to God and Jesus Christ." More information here.

Dozens of members of Congress file legal brief backing ObamaCare lawsuit

Posted on November 22, 2010
LifeNews: "Dozens of members of Congress and more than 70,000 Americans are represented in a new legal brief filed by a pro-life legal group supporting the lawsuit in Florida against ObamaCare. The American Center for Law and Justice today filed an amicus brief with a federal court in Florida on behalf of 63 members of Congress in support of Florida?s lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the federal health care law...

Police: 2 Christian brothers shot, killed in Iraq

Posted on November 22, 2010
FindLaw (AP): "Iraqi police say gunmen have shot and killed two Christian brothers in a northern city in the latest in a spate of attacks targeting the religious minority."

In ?The War on Christmas,? Christmas is winning

Posted on November 22, 2010
MSNBC: "The War on Christmas may be in its final days. This season, merry Christmas ? not happy holidays or season's greetings ? will dominate retailer's marketing messages. There will be Christmas sales and Christmas trees and Christmas carols galore...

Gettysburg wants to close Civil War chapel

Posted on November 22, 2010
OneNewsNow: "Liberty Institute and Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, are at odds over a reconstructed Civil War-era chapel. The replica was constructed in 2006 by John Wega, who refounded the United States Christian Commission (USCC) . . . But Hiram Sasser, director of litigation for Liberty Institute, says the USCC recently received a letter from the borough demanding that the building be torn down...

Lesbianism linked to upbringing

Posted on November 22, 2010
OneNewsNow: "A recently released study shows a link between childhood family structure and the rate of female homosexuality -- undermining the claim that sexual orientation is genetic or biological." "Women (aged 14-44) Who Had a Homosexual Sexual Partner in the Past Year" by Current Religious Attendance and Structure of Family of Origin

Carleton pro-life club to sue over ban

Posted on November 22, 2010
National Post: "The lawyer for an anti-abortion group just decertified at Carleton University said Friday he will take the school's student association to court unless the ban is reversed. Albertos Polizogopoulos called the decision to decertify Carleton Lifeline by the Carleton University Student Association (CUSA) 'totalitarian' and 'ludicrous...

The welfare-sceptics were right

Posted on November 22, 2010
Ed West writing in the Telegraph: "Back in the 1980s and early 1990s some conservatives began claiming that welfare policy was helping to institutionalise fatherlessness, and that the children of such non-unions were more likely to be dysfunctional. They were largely berated, and yet countless studies have shown this to be undoubtedly true...

DADT study to be released day earlier than planned

Posted on November 22, 2010
"Signaling the growing seriousness of the Obama administration's commitment this year to ending the military's ban on gays serving openly in the armed forces, the Defense Department said Sunday that it will release a long-awaited report on the matter earlier than planned because senators are eager to vote on whether to repeal the policy...

Who created teacher unions?

Posted on November 22, 2010
Education Reform Now!: "The false industrial model that prevails in education, discussed in a previous post, has led to the birth and inexorable growth of industrial style teacher unions throughout the country, so that today they?re on the A-list of powerful lobbies on both the state and national levels...

CA appeals court reverses decision on validity of replacing Episcopal bishop

Posted on November 22, 2010
Religion Clause: "In Schofield v. Superior Court of Fresno County, (CA App., Nov. 18, 2010), a California appellate court held that in a lawsuit brought by the Episcopal Church to establish its title to property of the break-away San Joaquin Diocese, the trial court must apply neutral principles of law to determine ownership of the property...

The UK?s selective application of the universal jurisdiction law

Posted on November 22, 2010
Hudson New York: "Shortly after the new British coalition government took office in May 2010, Hague, a long-time member of the Conservative Friends of Israel group, promised to move quickly to change the law, amid fears that the threat of arrest was preventing high-ranking Israelis from visiting Britain ...

Canada: B.C. court to decide whether polygamy is a protected religious practice

Posted on November 22, 2010
"A landmark debate begins today in British Columbia Supreme Court. Lawyers representing the attorneys-general of Canada and B.C. will argue the current law against polygamy ? Section 293 of the Criminal Code ? should be upheld. Their arguments are expected to focus on alleged harms resulting from polygamy to women, children and society...

Charter schools with ties to religious groups raise fears about state funds? use

Posted on November 22, 2010
Dallas Morning News: "Advantage's state-funded campuses showcase the latest breed of charter schools, born from faith-based principles and taxpayer funds. More than 20 percent of Texas' charter schools have some kind of religious ties. That's the case for six of the seven approved this year, including ones in Frisco and Arlington...

NY: No RLUIPA violations in processing use permit applications by mosque

Posted on November 22, 2010
Religion Clause: "In Islamic Cultural Center of Monticello, Inc. v. Village of Monticello, (NY Sup. Ct., Nov. 17, 2010), a New York trial court found no RLUIPA violations in a village's handling of applications for a special use permit and a certificate of occupancy for a mosque and related parking lot...

Maryland County concedes, settling RLUIPA land use lawsuit in mid-trial

Posted on November 22, 2010
Religion Clause: "Both The Capital and the Maryland Daily Record report that on Thursday in the midst of a RLUIPA trial, Anne Arundel County, Maryland signed a settlement in the lawsuit brought against it by Riverdale Baptist Church which sought to build a school on 57 acres of land it owns...

Constitutional Amendment proposal to streamline legislative repeals to hit Congress soon

Posted on November 22, 2010
The Daily Caller: "Conservatives are planning to propose an amendment to the Constitution at some time in the next few weeks aimed at allowing states to repeal legislation without the approval of Washington . . . The Repeal Amendment calls for allowing states to band together to repeal, or overturn, federal legislation...

Gary Beckner: Teachers unions not representative of teachers? changing views

Posted on November 22, 2010
Gary Beckner writing at Townhall: "Unfortunately, teachers largely have been pushed aside as education reformers determine how to help America?s students catch up with the rest of the world. Teachers can thank the teacher union leadership for being excluded from the education reform decisions...

Official: Pakistan Christian innocent of blasphemy

Posted on November 22, 2010
Associated Press: "A Pakistani Christian woman sentenced to death for blasphemy against Islam is innocent, a government minister investigating the case said Monday, adding he was hopeful she would be granted a presidential pardon and be freed."

Bloggers, promote your law blog by nominating your blog for inclusion in USLaw.com's Law Blog Directory and RSS Reader. Benefits described.