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Melissa Elaine Klein, et vir v. Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries

Paid petition · Court of Appeals of Oregon, No. A159899 · judgment January 26, 2022


GVR'd · June 30, 2023
Pre-decision estimate: 1% cert probability

Before the decision, well below the 4.1% base rate, with no standout signals pointing toward a grant.

Questions presented

Petitioners Melissa and Aaron Klein seek review of a decision by the Oregon Court of Appeals, issued on remand from this Court for further consideration in light of Masterpiece Cakeshop, Ltd. v. Colorado Civil Rights Comm’n, 138 S. Ct. 1719 (2018). The questions presented are:

  1. Whether, under Masterpiece, the Oregon Court of Appeals should have entered judgment for Petitioners after finding that Respondent had demonstrated anti-religious hostility.

  2. Whether, under Employment Division, Department of Human Resources of Oregon v. Smith, 494 U.S. 872 (1990), strict scrutiny applies to a free exercise claim that implicates other fundamental rights; and if not, whether this Court should return to its pre-Smith jurisprudence.

  3. Whether compelling an artist to create custom art for a wedding ceremony violates the Free Speech Clause of the First Amendment.

Counsel of record

For petitioner
R. Trent McCotter
Boyden Gray & Associates PLLC

For respondent
Benjamin Noah Gutman
Oregon Department of Justice

Case

Conference history
Distributed for 2 conferences

Amicus briefs
13 cert-stage

Linked docket
22A73

Proceedings

  1. Aug 01 2023
    Judgment and mandate issued.
  2. Jun 30 2023
    Petition GRANTED. Judgment VACATED and case REMANDED for further consideration in light of 303 Creative LLC v. Elenis, 600 U. S. ___ (2023).
  3. Jun 29 2023
    DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 6/29/2023.
  4. Dec 21 2022
    DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 1/6/2023.
  5. Dec 21 2022
    Reply of petitioners Melissa Elaine Klein, et al. filed. (Distributed)
  6. Dec 15 2022
    Waiver of the 14-day waiting period for the distribution of the petition pursuant to Rule 15.5 filed by petitioner.
  7. Dec 07 2022
    Brief of respondent Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries in opposition filed.
  8. Nov 03 2022
    Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is further extended to and including December 7, 2022.
  9. Nov 02 2022
    Motion to extend the time to file a response from November 7, 2022 to December 7, 2022, submitted to The Clerk.
  10. Oct 07 2022
    Brief amicus curiae of Mountain States Legal Foundation filed.
  11. Oct 07 2022
    Brief amici curiae of United States Senators and Representatives filed.
  12. Oct 07 2022
    Brief amicus curiae of Center for Constitutional Jurisprudence filed.
  13. Oct 07 2022
    Brief amici curiae of America’s Future, Inc., et al. filed.
  14. Oct 07 2022
    Brief amicus curiae of Alabama Center for Law and Liberty filed.
  15. Oct 07 2022
    Brief amici curiae of National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation, et al. filed.
  16. Oct 07 2022
    Brief amici curiae of Oklahoma, et al. filed.
  17. Oct 07 2022
    Amicus brief of Advancing American Freedom, Inc. not accepted for filing. (Corrected version submitted)(October 12, 2022)
  18. Oct 07 2022
    Brief amicus curiae of Advancing American Freedom, Inc. filed.
  19. Oct 06 2022
    Brief amicus curiae of Liberty Justice Center filed.
  20. Oct 06 2022
    Brief amici curiae of Constitutional Attorneys filed.
  21. Oct 03 2022
    Brief amicus curiae of Institute for Faith and Family filed.
  22. Sep 30 2022
    Brief amici curiae of Masterpiece Cakeshop Customers Stephanie Luck, et al. filed.
  23. Sep 30 2022
    Brief amici curiae of Manhattan Institute, et al. filed.
  24. Sep 16 2022
    Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is extended to and including November 7, 2022.
  25. Sep 14 2022
    Motion to extend the time to file a response from October 7, 2022 to November 7, 2022, submitted to The Clerk.
  26. Sep 14 2022
    Blanket Consent filed by Respondent, Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries
  27. Sep 07 2022
    Blanket Consent filed by Petitioner, Melissa Elaine Klein, et al.
  28. Sep 02 2022
    Petition for a writ of certiorari filed. (Response due October 7, 2022)
  29. Jul 26 2022
    Application (22A73) granted by Justice Kagan extending the time to file until September 2, 2022.
  30. Jul 22 2022
    Application (22A73) to extend the time to file a petition for a writ of certiorari from August 3, 2022 to September 2, 2022, submitted to Justice Kagan.