Religious Law

Law Prof Targets Catholic University Again, This Time over Lack of Muslim Prayer Rooms

Updated: A law professor who targeted Catholic University of America over its plan to bring back same-sex dorms has filed a new complaint that criticizes the school’s treatment of Muslim students. George Washington University law professor John Banzhaf filed his complaint with the Washington, D.C., Office of Human Rights, according…

Oct 31, 2011 1:50 PM CDT

Fla. Appeals Court Refuses to Bar Judge from Considering Islamic Law in Mosque Dispute

Lawyers disagree on the impact of a Florida appeals court’s refusal to block a Hillsborough judge from using Islamic law in a dispute involving a mosque. The appellate court in Lakeland denied a petition without comment that had sought to block Judge Richard Nielsen from referring to Islamic law, report…

Oct 26, 2011 1:04 PM CDT

Supreme Court Considers Whether Fired Lutheran Teacher May Sue for Retaliation

Justice Antonin Scalia took a hard line as the U.S. Supreme Court considered Wednesday whether a Lutheran school teacher may bring a retaliation suit for her firing. The teacher, Cheryl Perich, had gone on disability leave for narcolepsy and objected when the church school in Redford, Mich., said it would…

Oct 6, 2011 2:33 PM CDT

Inmate Convicted in Courthouse Slayings Sues, Says Ohio Won’t Provide Halal Meals to Muslims

An inmate on death row for murdering his estranged wife and brother-in-law in an Ohio domestic relations courtroom is pursuing a federal civil rights suit over the state prison system’s alleged refusal to provide halal meals to Muslims. Although the state does accommodate dietary restrictions of Muslims by offering no-pork…

Oct 3, 2011 5:54 PM CDT

Legal Analyst Previews the Supreme Court Previews

It’s the first Monday in October, which means it’s a big day for Supreme Court previews. In a story published on Friday, the Atlantic ranks the top 10 previews, including ones by USA Today (“a good place to start if you want a general overview without committing too much time…

Oct 3, 2011 1:15 PM CDT

Bringing Mediation to Pakistan

Backlogged courts, litigation-happy parties and risk-averse businesses may sound like the sorts of problems plaguing the U.S. legal system, but it’s also true in Pakistan, where a branch of the World Bank has been trying to convince lawyers that alternative dispute resolution may be a solution. The International Finance Corp.…

Oct 1, 2011 9:10 AM CDT

Cutting Edge: San Francisco Judge Orders Circumcision Measure Off the Ballot

Ocean/Corbis In an unusual move, a San Francisco Superior Court judge ordered this summer that a proposed city measure, scheduled for a November vote, be removed from the ballot. Backed by “intactivists” and receiving more than 7,000 signatures from San Franciscans, the measure sought to ban circumcisions of boys under…

Oct 1, 2011 9:00 AM CDT

Woman Is Told She’ll Get 10 Lashes for Driving in Saudi Arabia Before King Revokes Sentence

Updated: A woman who defied a religious and cultural ban by driving in Saudi Arabia was initially sentenced to 10 lashes in a landmark case in the ultraconservative Muslim county. It is the first time a court has upheld the rule against women drivers, which previously had been more informally…

Sep 29, 2011 1:50 PM CDT

Right to Vote Is On the Horizon for Women in Saudi Arabia, But Driving Ban Is Still Being Enforced

After months of campaigning by civil rights activists, Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah made a surprise announcement yesterday that women would soon get the right to vote, albeit not for a few more years, according to Agence France-Presse and the National Post. However, the right to drive remains elusive despite efforts…

Sep 26, 2011 10:02 PM CDT

Inmates and Religious Adviser Sue Over Jail’s Postcard Policy, Except for Attorney Mail

Seeking to save money and make it easier to monitor inmate mail, a Utah jail earlier this year started limiting mail to postcards, except for communications with lawyers. However, the postcard policy is unconstitutional, because it restricts inmates’ speech and religious expression, contends a federal lawsuit filed by several prisoners…

Sep 15, 2011 12:25 AM CDT

Lawyer Jay Sekulow’s Christian Calling Comes with Big Payday

Jay Sekulow’s Christian litigation career got a big boost in 1987 when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled on behalf of his client, Jews for Jesus, in a case challenging a ban on First Amendment activities at Los Angeles International Airport. Also benefiting are Sekulow family members and their businesses, which…

Sep 6, 2011 1:00 PM CDT

Fasting After Life Term in Child Bride Sex-Assault, Warren Jeffs Is Now in Coma, Expected to Recover

Sentenced to life earlier this month in a Texas sex-assault case concerning a child bride, the leader of a fringe polygamous religious sect is in a medically induced coma as a result of post-sentencing fast but expected to recover. Prison officials said Warren Jeffs, 55, was not on a hunger…

Aug 30, 2011 5:22 PM CDT

Polygamist Leader Warren Jeffs Gets Life in Child-Sex-Assault Case

A Texas jury today deliberated only half an hour today before sentencing the leader of a splinter religious group today to a life prison term for the sexual assault of a 12-year-old child bride. The life sentence for Warren Jeffs, 55, will be followed by a consecutive 20-year term for…

Aug 9, 2011 5:45 PM CDT

Warren Jeffs Channels Message to Trial Judge in Latest Recusal Motion: God Says Step Down

Unsuccessful in his earlier efforts to persuade the judge in his San Angelo, Texas, child sex-abuse trial to recuse herself, Warren Jeffs tried a new tack. In a new motion today, the 55-year-old leader of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints attached a transcript of what he…

Aug 1, 2011 10:04 PM CDT

Appeals Court Allows Hindus’ Suit Against Restaurant that Accidentally Served Them Meat

A New Jersey appeals court has reinstated a lawsuit filed by 16 Hindus against a restaurant that admits it accidentally served them meat-filled pastries in a take-out order. The plaintiffs are seeking money for a trip to India, saying they must visit the Ganges River to purify their souls, the…

Jul 19, 2011 6:27 PM CDT