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Morris County Board of Chosen Freeholders, et al. v. Freedom From Religion Foundation, et al.
Paid petition · Supreme Court of New Jersey, No. 079277 · judgment April 18, 2018
Before the decision, well below the 4.1% base rate, with no standout signals pointing toward a grant.
Questions presented
In Trinity Lutheran v. Comer, this Court held that, under the Free Exercise Clause, a church could not be excluded from a state’s playground resurfacing program solely because of its religious character. 137 S. Ct. 2012 (2017). The Court suggested, however, that it would reserve for another day how its ruling would apply to other government programs. Id. at 2024 n.3. Since that time, courts have divided on whether houses of worship can be excluded from historic preservation programs consistent with the Free Exercise Clause. The Supreme Courts of New Jersey and Massachusetts have upheld exclusions, concluding that using funds to repair or restore the exterior of a house of worship is a “religious use” far removed from the spending for playground safety at issue in Trinity Lutheran. The Supreme Court of Vermont and the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, in contrast, have held that exclusion would conflict with Trinity Lutheran and violate the Free Exercise Clause by denying a public benefit to an otherwise eligible entity just because it is religious. This petition thus presents the following questions:
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Whether using generally available historic preservation funds to repair or restore a house of worship constitutes a “religious use” that falls outside the scope of Trinity Lutheran.
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Whether the categorical exclusion of all active houses of worship from historic preservation grants violates Trinity Lutheran and the First Amendment as an exclusion based on religious status.
Counsel of record
For petitioner
Eric S. Baxter
The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty
For respondent
Erwin Chemerinsky
Argument & decision
Decided March 4, 2019.
Proceedings
- Mar 04 2019Petition DENIED. Statement of Justice Kavanaugh, with whom Justice Alito and Justice Gorsuch join, respecting the denial of certiorari. (Detached Opinion). VIDED.
- Feb 25 2019DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 3/1/2019.
- Feb 19 2019DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 2/22/2019.
- Feb 04 2019DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 2/15/2019.
- Jan 14 2019DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 1/18/2019.
- Jan 07 2019DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 1/11/2019.
- Dec 21 2018Supplemental brief of petitioners Morris County Board of Chosen Freeholders, et al. filed. (Distributed)
- Dec 12 2018DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 1/4/2019.
- Dec 10 2018Reply of petitioner Morris County Board of Chosen Freeholders filed.
- Nov 26 2018Brief of respondents Freedom From Religion Foundation, et al. in opposition filed. VIDED.
- Oct 22 2018Brief amicus curiae of National Trust for Historic Preservation filed.
- Oct 22 2018Brief amicus curiae of International Municipal Lawyers Association filed.
- Oct 09 2018Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is extended to and including November 26, 2018.
- Oct 01 2018Motion to extend the time to file a response from October 22, 2018 to November 26, 2018, submitted to The Clerk.
- Sep 18 2018Petition for a writ of certiorari filed. (Response due October 22, 2018)
- Jul 31 2018Application (18A105) granted by Justice Alito extending the time to file until September 18, 2018.
- Jul 27 2018Application (18A105) to extend the time to file a petition for a writ of certiorari from August 19, 2018 to September 19, 2018, submitted to Justice Alito.