Moses v. Ruszkowski
New Mexico textbooks for kids Every child has the right to a quality education. Accessing that right is already an uphill battle for students in New Mexico, especially for thousands of low-income and...
Becket Case Database
View our entire legal documents library here.
California v. Little Sisters of the Poor
WEBSITE for Little Sisters Cases On October 6, 2017, Health & Human Services issued a new rule with an updated, broad religious exemption that finally protected religious non-profits like the Little...
American Legion v. American Humanist Association
For 90 years, a war memorial in Bladensburg, Maryland has stood as a reminder of the ultimate sacrifice made by local soldiers in World War I. Yet in 2014, the American Humanist...
FFRF v. Morris County Board of Freeholders
Historic preservation is important—and legal Historic buildings are an important part of our national heritage, from Independence Hall, to George Washington’s home in Mount Vernon, Virginia, to...
Eternal Word Television Network v. Azar
Thirty years ago, a cloistered nun named Mother Angelica started a small television network in her monastery garage to spread the teachings of the Catholic Church. Today, the network she started,...
InterVarsity Christian Fellowship v. University of Iowa
A faith community for students, focused on fellowship and service For 25 years, the InterVarsity Graduate Christian Fellowship student group has been part of campus life at the University of Iowa, a...
InterVarsity Christian Fellowship v. Wayne State University
A welcome addition for 75 years The InterVarsity student group on Wayne State campus began in the 1940s as one of the first InterVarsity chapters in the United States. It provided a place for...
New Doe Child # 1 v. United States of America (Eighth Circuit)
Atheist activist Dr. Michael Newdow has sued yet again in his attempt to scrub “God” from the public square. This time he has sued the government to challenge our national motto, “In God We...
Sharonell Fulton, et al. v. City of Philadelphia
WEBSITE for Religious Adoption Cases Children, and a City, in Crisis Sharonell Fulton has fostered more than 40 children over 25 years. She currently cares for two young siblings with special needs....
Congregation Jeshuat Israel v. Congregation Shearith Israel
Centuries ago, the famous Jewish silversmith Myer Myers crafted sacred rimonim, finials that ornament the Torah scroll in a Jewish synagogue. Today these ancient religious artifacts remain safe on...
The Pledge of Allegiance Cases
For over a decade, Becket has successfully defended the words “one nation under God” in the Pledge of Allegiance. Why? Because the phrase “under God” answers one of the most important...
Slockish v. U.S. Federal Highway Administration
A spiritual promise to protect sacred lands of Mount Hood The Klickitat and Cascade Tribes of Yakama Nation have lived in the areas surrounding Mount Hood for centuries. It has been the center of...
Little Sisters of the Poor v. Azar
An unconstitutional federal mandate In August 2011, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued a federal mandate as part of the Affordable Care Act. The mandate required employers to...
East Texas Baptist University & Houston Baptist University v. Azar
Houston Baptist University & East Texas Baptist University East Texas Baptist University and Houston Baptist University are Christian liberal arts colleges in Texas that hold faith central to their...
Reaching Souls International, Inc. v. Azar
To defend their faith, an orphan care ministry, a Christian college, and a 100-year-old Baptist ministry are standing up to the government’s HHS mandate, which is forcing them to violate their...
Freedom From Religion Foundation v. Lehigh County
Seals and flags often reflect our history and culture Images of historic significance are common on the seals and flags of states, counties, and towns across America. New Mexico’s flag has a single...
Grussgott v. Milwaukee Jewish Day School, Inc.
A former teacher of Hebrew and Jewish studies sued a Wisconsin Jewish Day School in 2016 for unlawful termination. Becket filed an amicus brief in support of the school, explaining that religious...
Knick v. Township of Scott, Pennsylvania
Rose Mary Knick sued her local government in 2014 for seizing her private property without compensation, but a Pennsylvania district court dismissed her case. Ms. Knick tried again, but in 2017, the...
Ave Maria University v. Azar
Jim Towey, President of Ave Maria University, knows first-hand the immense value religious people of all faiths bring to the public square and is determined to stop the Administration’s efforts to...
Wheaton College v. Azar
In 2012, a government mandate threatened Wheaton College, a Christian school and one of the top liberal arts colleges in the country, with crippling fines unless it violated its religious beliefs....
Colorado Christian University v. Azar
Colorado Christian University is the first interdenominational Christian college to challenge in federal court a new Obamacare mandate that requires private employers to pay for abortifacients in...
Kondrat’yev, et al v. City of Pensacola
A historic cross in a historic city The City of Pensacola has a rich history older than the U.S. itself. A key seaport connected to the Gulf of Mexico, it is named after the Native American people...
Dumont v. Lyon
WEBSITE for Religious Adoption Cases A Desperate Need There is a national foster care crisis: more and more vulnerable children are being placed in the foster care system, and there aren’t...
Zelman v. Simmons-Harris
Does Ohio’s school voucher program violate the Establishment Clause? Becket, and the Supreme Court, said “No.” The Institute for Justice and Porter, Wright, Morris & Arthur were...
Wyoming Sawmills Inc. v. United States Forest Service
Medicine Wheel is a sacred prehistoric stone circle about 80 feet in diameter that was constructed by the aboriginal peoples of North America. Although the age of the structure is unknown,...
Ward v. Wilbanks
Julea Ward was kicked out of Eastern Michigan University’s counseling program after she declined to counsel a student against her religious beliefs. Represented by the Alliance Defending...
Van Orden v. Perry
In an Establishment Clause challenge to a Ten Commandments display on the Texas State Capitol grounds, Becket’s amicus brief argued that such displays are constitutionally protected. The Supreme...
U.S. v. Sterling
Our nation’s military was practicing religious liberty even before our country recognized it’s inherently beneficial traits: solving religious conflicts and advancing the human right to freely...
U.S. v. Florida Department of Corrections
Prisoners are not popular, but they are human. That is why Becket defends religious freedom for prisoners. In 2000, Congress discovered that government bureaucrats were routinely trampling religious...
Town of Greece v. Galloway
A diverse town practices a cherished tradition In the town of Greece, New York, volunteers from any religious faith may commence legislative meetings with a prayer. The town has had a wide variety...
Salazar v. Buono
In a case involving the constitutionality of a cross memorial in the Mojave Desert, Becket’s amicus brief argued that the court of appeals should be reversed, because the plaintiff lacked...
Sac and Fox Nation v. Borough of Jim Thorpe
Jim Thorpe, a living legend Arguably one of the greatest athletes of the 20th century, Jim Thorpe won two Olympic gold medals and played three different professional sports – football, track and...
Reed v. Town of Gilbert
Everyone is welcome at Good News Community Church. Services are held Sundays. The Church encourages Christian fellowship through Bible study, religious song, and prayer. Its mission is outreach,...
Pleasant Grove v. Summum
The city of Pleasant Grove, Utah included a Ten Commandments monument —along with other monuments—in its city park. A small religious group wanted to include its own religious monument in the same...
Pacific Lutheran University v. SEIU Local 925
Pacific Lutheran University is a private university in Tacoma, Washington offering undergraduate and graduate studies in a liberal arts environment. It is committed to “diversity, justice, and...
Norwood v. Gamble
Two Ohio residents were being forcibly evicted by Norwood City so that commercial developers could improve the land and generate more tax revenue. Becket filed a friend-of-the-court brief to the Ohio...
Newdow v. United States of America (Second Circuit)
God is not a dirty word. The Founders believed this and courts have continually upheld their view. Yet atheist activist Dr. Michael Newdow has sued again and again to scrub “God” from the public...
Negusie v. Mukasey
Daniel Negusie, an Eritrean Christian, was imprisoned in inhumane conditions for his refusal to serve in his country’s military. While in prison, he was punished and threatened with death for his...
Mitchell v. Helms
In a case challenging the constitutionality of a government school aid program as applied to parochial schools, the Supreme Court reversed the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, which had...
Meredith v. Daniels
In 2011, Indiana enacted a school choice program called the Choice Scholarship Program. The law help families of lesser means send their children to private schools of their choice and avoid failing...
McCreary County v. American Civil Liberties Union
In the same day the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the Ten Commandments display in Van Orden v. Perry, the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 against the Ten Commandments display in a Kentucky courthouse....
Lopez v. Schwartz, Duncan v. State of Nevada
Expanding Educational Opportunities for Nevada Students Like any other state, Nevada seeks to provide quality education to students of all incomes. So in 2015, the state of Nevada established the...
Locke v. Davey
The Supreme Court held that the State of Washington did not violate the First Amendment’s Free Exercise Clause by forbidding the use of state-funded scholarship money to receive degrees in...
Kelo v. City of New London
The Supreme Court held that the city’s use of eminent domain power to take private property for the purpose of furthering its economic development plan did not run afoul of the constitutional...
Jenks v. Spry
Related to previous Oklahoma Blaine cases: Jenks v. Spry & Kimery v. Broken Arrow Public Schools Stephanie and Russell Spry’s disabled son will be able to get the best education from a school...
Janus v. American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees
In 2015, Mark Janus, a government employee at the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Service, sued his union—the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees. Janus argued that...
Islamic Society of Basking Ridge v. Township of Bernards
A suburban New Jersey town denied a small Muslim congregation the right to build a new mosque where it could meet to worship. So the congregation went to court. A small mosque with a big dream...
Hinrichs v. Bosma
For 188 years, the Indiana House of Representatives had a long-standing tradition of opening each day of legislative business with a prayer. These prayers were offered by local chaplains and clergymen...
Heffernan v. City of Paterson
In 2006 New Jersey police officer Jeffrey Heffernan was spotted picking up a campaign sign for the candidate opposing the mayor of Paterson. Officer Heffernan didn’t live in the city and was picking...
Guzzi v. Thompson
Rosario Guzzi is a prison inmate in Massachusetts who requested kosher meals based upon his “Orthodox Catholic” beliefs. The state denied his request and when he sued, the federal district court...