Religious Law Case Study

A student at Westside High School requested to form a Christian Club that would meet after school. The club would be granted the same privileges as the other student groups at the school, but they did not have a faculty sponsor. Her request was denied by the principal stating that the club would violate the Establishment Clause and the School Board policy requiring a faculty member to sponsor the club. Mergens took her concerns to the School Board. The School Board upheld the principal’s decision. Mergens filed a lawsuit against the Board of Education of Westside Community Schools, for denying the request for a Christian

Application/Analysis: The court agrees that the state has a legitimate interest in protecting its citizens from fraud, but in this instance, the court takes issue with the fact that a sole authority, the secretary of the Public Welfare Council, can decide what is considered a valid religion. The court states that the secretary “is empowered to determine whether the cause is a

Synopsis of Rule of Law. The state can't compel supported religious action on its nationals by constraining them to pick amongst participation and their own particular intrinsically secured rights.

Legal Question: The legal issue presented in this case ultimately questioned the University of Michigan’s admission policy which sought a more diverse student body. The court addressed whether the University of Michigan’s use of racial preferences in the admission process violated

Justice Lewis Powell, writing for the court, said that the Supreme Court of the United States would not consider past discrimination in reviewing the policies of the University, as this is synonymous to allowing political trends to dictate constitutional principles.

The overall issue did Justice Vinson state in this case is the concept of the 14th Amendment which stipulates the equal protection clause. Thus, the petitioner will not get his full-constitutional right in the law school for Negroes that is not fully-equipped with facilities that will help him get his law degree. In addition, limited part-time educators for Negroes is unacceptable. Whereby, admission to the Texas University of Law School will provide him the best education that white people and other race achieved. Only then, that the 14th amendment will be

The court held that Title IX, which only applies to educational institutions receiving federal funds, could be applied to a private institution that refused direct federal funding but for which a large number of students had received federal funded scholarships. The court stated that there was no “substantive difference” between institutional assistance and aid received by a school through its students. Title IX coverage, the Court found, was triggered by the BEOG’s.

(1) Constitutional Question: Is the medical program of the University of California, giving different standards to minority’s, in violations of the Equal Protections Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment and the Civil Rights Act or 1964?

The 1963 U.S. Supreme Court decision in Abington v, Schempp ruled that public schools and personnel could not mandate devotional activities in their classrooms or schools. Justice Clark went on to say that study of religion as a part of human culture and the humanities is well within the guidelines established by the First Amendment to the Constitution. This Supreme Court decision allows for the academic study of religion at all levels of public education. So groups cannot be barred from using public school facilities or other public buildings. The Equal Access Act was passed by the 98th Congress in the 1984 and upheld by the Supreme Court in Board of Education of Westside Community School District v. Mergens (1990). This gave religious groups

Western Legal Tradition, as coined by Harold J. Berman, is the explicit set of legal aggregates, principles, and theories that are related to the idiosyncratic, reputable culture of Western Europe, envisioned as an articulate tradition, capable of maturing over an extended period. Dating back to the 11th century in Western Europe, legality began maturing exponentially, in terms of legal and religious thought through the outlet of revolutions and religious movements that impacted them, such as the religiously-inspired Papal Revolution of the 11th and 13th century. Individuals studying this philosophy today have come to question whether the three factors – religion, law, and the movements/insurgencies– were equally vital, fundamental, and collaborating

The number of Federal lawsuits filed by inmates dealing with religious rights has increased significantly in the past several years. At the beginning of the 2000’s there were 43 lawsuits that were filed dealing with inmates and religious rights. In the late 2000’s there were 116 lawsuits filed. Which then later led to a whopping 1,588 in the years 2010-2014. Just within the first 8 months of last year there were 212 new religious lawsuits filed (Turner 76). Religious freedom has become a big epidemic in the Justice System. Harry R. Dammer Ph.D., an associate Professor along with Chair of Criminology and Criminal Justice at Niagara University, stated “Many of the leading court cases that provide current guidelines for the practice of religion in American Prisons were decided during the 1960’s and 1970’s. Until then, legal issues related to religious inmates were rarely brought up before the courts” (N.P.).

Conversely, unlike the process employed by the Commission Board in Pelphery, Martin County’s list of Clergy members is in alphabetical order and does not have an “impermissible motive.” The clergy members are not categorized by religion or ostracized from the list because of their religion. It is important to realize that Marsh only prohibits a selection process that is made with an “impermissible motive.” Id. at 1278. It must be duly noted that the “impermissible motive” standard does not require all congregations to be allowed the opportunity to pray. Id. at 1282. If the Plaintiff, who is of the Sikh religion, or a clergy member of her religion expressed interest in giving an invocation, they would not be excluded from doing so. However, the Sikh religion does not have a

The Academy's bill states the foregoing facts and then alleges that the challenged act contravenes the corporation's rights guaranteed by the Fourteenth Amendment”. Pierce, Governor of Oregon, et al. v. Hill Military Academy, companion case, (268 U.S. 510, 532–533)(FindLaw.com). The Society of Sisters claimed “the enactment conflicts with the right of parents to choose schools where their children will receive appropriate mental and religious training, the right of the child to influence the parents' choice of a school, the right of schools and teachers therein to engage in a useful business or profession”. (268 U.S. 510, 532)(FindLaw.com). Both of these arguments are fair and have good points, The Sisters belived if infringed on their 1st Amendment right of practicing religion freely and their 14th amendment right which refers to protection of property, which would be the signed contracts with the students and parents. Both the Society of Sisters and Hill Military Academy are businesses that do make some sort of income so it does fall under the 14th amendment so it is property belonging to someone with the contracts between school and

To be eligible for an exemption under that section, an institution must be “charitable” in the common law sense, and therefore must not be contrary to public policy. In the court's view , Bob Jones University did not meet its requirements

B. Maybe, The court will have to use nine factors to determine if Faith+1 is a religious entity that would allow them to