The U.S. Supreme Court granted a petition for a writ of certiorari in Klein v. Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries, No. 18-547, on June 17, but at the same time vacated the Oregon Court of Appeals decision in the case, 289 Or. App. 507 (Dec. 28, 2017), and remanded the case to that court for “further consideration” in light of the Court’s decision last year in Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission… <Read More>
public accommodations laws
Federal Appeals Court Refuses to Block Enforcement of City Anti-Discrimination Policy Against Catholic Social Services Agency
The U.S. 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals refused a request by Catholic Social Services (CSS) to block enforcement of the City of Philadelphia’s requirement that the agency not discriminate against same-sex couples who seek certification to be foster parents. Fulton v. City of Philadelphia, 2019 U.S. App. LEXIS 11711, 2019 WL 1758355 (3rd Cir. 2019). The April 22 ruling by a unanimous three-judge panel, which affirmed the denial of a preliminary injunction by District … <Read More>
Federal Court Ruling on “Religious Exemptions” from Anti-Discrimination Laws on Same-Sex Weddings May Preview Supreme Court Decision
Chief Judge John R. Tunheim of the U.S. District Court in Minnesota ruled in Telescope Media Group v. Lindsey, 2017 WL 4179899, 2017 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 153014 (D. Minn., Sept. 20, 2017), that for-profit businesses do not enjoy a constitutional right to refuse to provide their services for same-sex weddings on the same basis that they provide services for different-sex weddings. Turning back a case brought by the anti-gay religious litigation organization, Alliance Defending … <Read More>
Oregon Appeals Court Affirms Damages Award Against Bar That Ousted LGBT Social Club
The Court of Appeals of Oregon has affirmed an award of $405,000 against a North Portland bar and the bar’s owner, Chris Penner, upon a finding by the Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries (OBLI) that they violated the state’s public accommodations law by denying “equal accommodations” to an informal social club that included gay and transgender people. Blachana, LLC v. Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries, 273 Ore. App. 806, 2015 Ore. App. … <Read More>