| 25-755 |
The Society of Apostolic Church Ministries Bishop, Elizabeth Gardner Corporation Sole and Her Successors v. United States |
Ninth Circuit |
2025-12-29 |
Pending |
Response Waived |
church-autonomy church-property first-amendment fourteenth-amendment government-interference ministerial-exemption property-seizure religious-freedom-restoration-act |
I. Whether the Ninth Circuit permitted the government to violate the First Amendment of the Constitution, Religious Freedom Restoration Act, the Estab… |
| 25-448 |
Michael Poffenbarger v. Troy E. Meink, Secretary of the Air Force, et al. |
Sixth Circuit |
2025-10-14 |
Pending |
Amici (1) |
back-pay equitable-relief judicial-estoppel reinstatement religious-freedom-restoration-act retirement-points |
The Religious Freedom Rest oration Act
("RFRA") permits courts to award " appropriate relief "
against the government. 42 U.S.C. § 2000bb -1. This
… |
| 25-446 |
Hunter Doster, Individually and on Behalf of All Others Similarly Situated as a Class, et al. v. Troy E. Meink, Secretary of the Air Force, et al. |
Sixth Circuit |
2025-10-14 |
Pending |
|
back-pay equitable-relief judicial-estoppel reinstatement religious-freedom-restoration-act retirement-points |
1. Whether RFRA permits the equitable relief of reinstatement, to include back pay and retirement points.
2. Whether Respondents are judicially estop… |
| 24-291 |
Apache Stronghold v. United States, et al. |
Ninth Circuit |
2024-09-13 |
Denied |
Amici (15)Relisted (18) |
free-exercise-clause government-action native-american-rights religious-exercise religious-freedom-restoration-act sacred-site |
Whether the government 'substantially burdens' religious exercise under RFRA, or must satisfy heightened scrutiny under the Free Exercise Clause, when… |
| 23-1101 |
Jacob N. Ferguson v. Robbin M. Owen |
District of Columbia |
2024-04-10 |
Denied |
Response Waived |
alternative-means d.c.-circuit free-exercise government-permit religious-exercise religious-freedom-restoration-act religious-question-of-law seat-of-government substantial-burden |
Whether religious exercise must be required, central, or important to a system of religious belief |
| 23-927 |
National Religious Broadcasters Noncommercial Music License Committee v. Copyright Royalty Board, et al. |
District of Columbia |
2024-02-27 |
Denied |
Amici (7)Response RequestedResponse WaivedRelisted (2) |
administrative-procedure administrative-procedure-act burden-of-proof copyright-royalty copyright-royalty-board first-amendment rate-setting religious-freedom religious-freedom-restoration-act webcasting |
Whether approving noncommercial rates that favor NPR's secular speech over religious speech violates the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) or t… |
| 23-717 |
Israel Alvarado, et al. v. Lloyd J. Austin, III, Secretary of Defense, et al. |
Fourth Circuit |
2024-01-03 |
Denied |
Amici (3)Response RequestedResponse WaivedRelisted (2) |
coerced-speech covid-19-vaccine-mandate military-chaplains promotion-discrimination religious-freedom religious-freedom-restoration-act retaliation rfra-violation up-or-out-promotion-requirements up-or-out-requirement |
Whether this action was and remains justiciable because the RFRA violations' effects continue |
| 23-5183 |
Allen S. Herschaft v. New York City Campaign Finance Board |
Second Circuit |
2023-07-25 |
Denied |
Response WaivedIFP |
civil-procedure civil-rights due-process equal-protection first-amendment free-exercise religious-freedom religious-freedom-restoration-act res-judicata standing |
Whether Res Judicata precludes bringing the case? |
| 22-1166 |
D. K. Williams, Warden, et al. v. Rafiq Sabir, et al. |
Second Circuit |
2023-06-01 |
Dismissed |
|
civil-rights constitutional-precedent due-process group-prayer inmate-rights prison-policy qualified-immunity religious-freedom-restoration-act |
Whether RFRA claims are exempt from the requirement not to define clearly established law at a high level of generality |
| 22-7614 |
Lisa A. Biron v. Jody Upton, Warden, et al. |
Fifth Circuit |
2023-05-23 |
Denied |
Response RequestedResponse WaivedRelisted (2)IFP |
christian-faith constitutional-rights federal-inmate first-amendment legitimate-penological-interests prison-regulations qualified-immunity religious-freedom religious-freedom-restoration-act substantial-burden |
Does the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) apply to protect a federal inmate's religious liberties when she has adequately pleaded a substantia… |
| 22-737 |
Brian A. Truskey v. Thomas J. Vilsack, Secretary of Agriculture |
Sixth Circuit |
2023-02-07 |
Denied |
Response RequestedResponse WaivedRelisted (2) |
employment employment-discrimination first-amendment religious-freedom-restoration-act sixth-circuit social-security-number tax-reporting title-vii |
Whether the government's requirement that an individual possess a valid Social Security Number imposes a substantial burden on Petitioner's religious … |
| 22-5989 |
Michael Edward Bowman v. United States |
Ninth Circuit |
2022-11-03 |
Denied |
Response WaivedIFP |
civil-rights constitutional-interpretation constitutional-law due-process jury-trial ninth-circuit religious-freedom-restoration-act tax-return |
Did the Ninth Circuit impermissibly ignore the express language of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act and deny Mr. Bowman his right to a jury trial… |
| 22-321 |
Wilbur Slockish, et al. v. Department of Transportation, et al. |
Ninth Circuit |
2022-10-05 |
Dismissed |
Amici (2) |
equitable-relief federal-courts federal-land mootness mootness-doctrine native-american-rights nonparties religious-freedom religious-freedom-restoration-act sacred-site sacred-site-preservation |
Whether the Ninth Circuit's mootness ruling warrants summary reversal |
| 21-8180 |
Rives Grogan v. United States |
District of Columbia |
2022-06-17 |
Denied |
Response WaivedIFP |
burwell-v-hobby-lobby court-of-appeals hobby-lobby-precedent punishment-magnitude religious-exercise religious-freedom religious-freedom-restoration-act substantial-burden supreme-court-precedent |
Whether the Court of Appeals erred, contravening Supreme Court precedent set forth in Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc., by weighing Mr. Grogan's al… |
| 21-1297 |
Clare Therese Grady, Carmen Trotta, and Martha Hennessy v. United States |
Eleventh Circuit |
2022-03-25 |
Denied |
|
circuit-split criminal-prosecution free-exercise government-burden government-burden-of-proof least-restrictive-means prosecution religious-freedom religious-freedom-restoration-act rfra sincerely-held-beliefs |
Whether the Religious Freedom Restoration Act imposes a burden on the government to demonstrate that it has actually considered and rejected the effic… |
| 21-5522 |
Meghan Kelly v. Donald J. Trump |
Delaware |
2021-08-30 |
Denied |
IFP |
civil-procedure establishment-clause executive-order free-exercise-of-religion government-religion mootness religious-freedom-restoration-act ripeness service-of-process standing substitution-of-parties |
Whether failure to serve the brief was fatal error |
| 19-1415 |
John J. Dierlam v. Donald J. Trump, President of the United States, et al. |
Fifth Circuit |
2020-06-24 |
Denied |
Response Waived |
1st-amendment affordable-care-act civil-rights constitutional-violations due-process equal-protection first-amendment free-speech freedom-of-association healthcare-mandate religious-freedom religious-freedom-restoration-act rfra |
Whether the Affordable Care Act contains one or more constitutional violations |
| 19-1053 |
Little Sisters of the Poor Jeanne Jugan Residence v. California, et al. |
Ninth Circuit |
2020-02-25 |
GVR |
Response WaivedRelisted (2) |
affordable-care-act contraception contraceptive-coverage federal-regulation health-insurance health-plans regulatory-authority regulatory-requirement religious-exemption religious-freedom-restoration-act rfra standing |
Whether the federal government lawfully exempted religious objectors from the regulatory requirement to provide health plans that include contraceptiv… |
| 19-1038 |
Department of Health and Human Services, et al. v. California, et al. |
Ninth Circuit |
2020-02-19 |
GVR |
Response WaivedRelisted (2) |
administrative-law affordable-care-act conscience-exemption contraceptive-coverage contraceptive-mandate health-insurance preventive-services religious-freedom-restoration-act |
Whether the agencies had statutory authority under the ACA and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993 to expand the conscience exemption to the… |
| 19-805 |
Ben Adam v. William P. Barr, Attorney General, et al. |
Second Circuit |
2019-12-26 |
Denied |
Response Waived |
circuit-split criminal-statute due-process first-amendment prosecution-threat religious-freedom religious-freedom-restoration-act religious-practice standing standing-doctrine threat-of-prosecution |
Did the Second Circuit err in finding that petitioner lacked standing to challenge a criminal statute under the threat of prosecution doctrine |
| 19-804 |
Xiu Jian Sun v. Donald J. Trump, President of the United States, et al. |
District of Columbia |
2019-12-23 |
Denied |
Response Waived |
administrative-law biblical-allegation civil-rights constitutional-claim divine-communication due-process first-amendment legal-standing presidential-liability religious-freedom religious-freedom-restoration-act religious-interpretation separation-of-church-and-state standing |
Whether the plaintiff's claims against the President of the United States and other government officials for alleged divine revelations and religious … |
| 19-454 |
Donald J. Trump, President of the United States, et al. v. Pennsylvania, et al. |
Third Circuit |
2019-10-07 |
Judgment Issued |
Amici (1)Relisted (2) |
administrative-procedure-act affordable-care-act agency-rulemaking conscience-exemption contraceptive-coverage contraceptive-mandate healthcare-mandate nationwide-injunction religious-freedom-restoration-act standing statutory-authority |
Whether the agencies had statutory authority to expand the conscience exemption to the contraceptive-coverage mandate |
| 19-431 |
Little Sisters of the Poor Saints Peter and Paul Home v. Pennsylvania, et al. |
Third Circuit |
2019-10-02 |
Judgment Issued |
Amici (11)Relisted (2) |
administrative-law administrative-rule affordable-care-act contraceptive-coverage injunction intervene nationwide-injunction religious-freedom-restoration-act standing standing-to-appeal |
Whether a litigant who is directly protected by an administrative rule and has been allowed to intervene to defend it lacks standing to appeal a decis… |
| 18-9629 |
Matthew Hale v. Federal Bureau of Prisons, et al. |
Tenth Circuit |
2019-06-11 |
Denied |
Response WaivedIFP |
civil-rights constitutional-law due-process first-amendment free-exercise-clause free-speech religious-freedom religious-freedom-restoration-act standing |
whether the Tenth Circuit's usage of a factor-driven test for determining whether a particular belief system qualifies as a 'religious' group for purp… |
| 18-1297 |
New Doe Child #1, et al. v. United States, et al. |
Eighth Circuit |
2019-04-12 |
Denied |
Response Waived |
atheism currency-inscription due-process equal-protection establishment-clause monotheism political-disenfranchisement religious-freedom religious-freedom-restoration-act |
Whether Congress violates the Establishment Clause when it makes laws respecting an establishment of Monotheism, thus perpetuating and exacerbating th… |
| 18-1192 |
The Little Sisters of the Poor Jeanne Jugan Residence v. California, et al. |
Ninth Circuit |
2019-03-13 |
Denied |
Response Waived |
administrative-procedure administrative-procedure-act constitutional-rights contraceptive-coverage contraceptive-mandate government-mandate government-regulation health-care health-plans healthcare-coverage healthcare-law interim-final-rules national-importance religious-exemption religious-exemptions religious-freedom-restoration-act religious-objection standing |
Whether RFRA requires the government to exempt religious objectors from providing health plans that include contraceptive coverage |
| 18-1026 |
William Kinney, et ux. v. Anderson Lumber Company, Inc., et al. |
Sixth Circuit |
2019-02-06 |
Denied |
|
anti-trust antitrust-law-sherman-act concurrent-jurisdiction due-process due-process-clause equal-protection fourteenth-amendment religious-freedom religious-freedom-restoration-act sherman-antitrust-act unlicensed-practice-of-law |
Whether Tennessee's law for the unlicensed practice of law violates the Sherman Anti-Trust Act and the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment |
| 18-583 |
Kenneth Mayle v. United States, et al. |
Seventh Circuit |
2018-11-05 |
Denied |
Response Waived |
compelled-speech compelling-governmental-interest equal-protection free-exercise free-speech government-burden least-restrictive-means minority-rights religious-beliefs religious-freedom-restoration-act sincerely-held-religious-beliefs standing statutory-interpretation |
Whether the lower court's ruling violates the Supreme Court's precedents by improperly substituting its own view that carrying currency bearing a reli… |
| 18-548 |
Adorers of the Blood of Christ, United States Province, et al. v. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, et al. |
Third Circuit |
2018-10-26 |
Denied |
Amici (2) |
administrative-procedure agency-action federal-energy-regulatory-commission judicial-review natural-gas-act religious-exercise religious-freedom-restoration-act standing |
Whether RFRA claims must be exhausted through administrative procedures before being asserted in court |