The San José Unified School District stripped the Fellowship of Christian Athletes of its status as a fully recognized student organization at three high schools in the district.  It did so because FCA requires its student leaders to affirm a Statement of Faith.  The Robertson Center filed a friend of the court brief in the Ninth Circuit supporting FCA.

In August 2022, the Ninth Circuit panel ruled in favor of FCA.  But the School District asked the Ninth Circuit to reconsider its decision, and the en banc court agreed to rehear the case.  In early 2023, the Robertson Center filed another friend of the court brief with the en banc Ninth Circuit making First Amendment and Equal Access Act arguments.

This ruling sets an important precedent in a circuit court that was historically one of the most hostile to religious liberty.  It will ensure religious organizations like FCA will be treated the same as other groups in public schools. 

The Robertson Center for Constitutional Law is an academic center within the Regent University School of Law.  Established in 2020, the Center pairs advocacy and scholarship to advance first principles in constitutional law, including originalism, separation of powers, and religious liberty.  The Robertson Center has represented former members of Congress, Christian ministries, and others in briefs before the U.S. Supreme Court and other appellate courts.  Learn more about the work of the Robertson Center at https://constitutionallaw.regent.edu/our-work/.

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VIRGINIA BEACH, VA (June 29, 2023) – The Robertson Center for Constitutional Law celebrates today’s United States Supreme Court ruling in Groff v. DeJoy.  This marks the third consecutive U.S. Supreme Court term in which the Robertson Center has filed a brief in support of the prevailing party.

In February 2023, the Robertson Center and attorneys from McGuireWoods filed a friend-of-the-court brief in support of the petitioner, postal carrier Gerald Groff.  Mr. Groff, an evangelical Christian, was forced to resign from his job after the United States Postal Service refused to accommodate his Sunday Sabbath observance.  The Robertson Center’s brief presented the Center’s original research showing that a ruling in favor of Mr. Groff would benefit working-class religious Americans.  The Robertson Center’s research was also published by the George Mason Law Review Forum and can be found here.

“Today’s ruling is great news for all Americans of faith.  But as our research shows, those in the working class will benefit most.  We were honored to play a small part in correcting a great injustice,” said Brad Lingo, dean of Regent University School of Law and executive director of the Robertson Center for Constitutional Law.  “It was an amazing experience to research and present our findings directly to the U.S. Supreme Court,” said Alex Touchet, a 2022 Regent Law graduate and fellow at the Robertson Center.

About the Robertson Center for Constitutional Law

The Robertson Center for Constitutional Law is an academic center within the Regent University School of Law.  Established in 2020, the Robertson Center pairs advocacy and scholarship to advance first principles in constitutional law, including originalism, separation of powers, and religious liberty.  The Robertson Center has represented former members of Congress, Christian ministries, and others in briefs before the U.S. Supreme Court and other appellate courts.

About Regent University

Founded in 1977, Regent University is America’s premier Christian university, with more than 13,000 students studying on its 70-acre campus in Virginia Beach, Virginia, and online around the world. The university offers associate, bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees in more than 150 areas of study including business, communication and the arts, counseling, cybersecurity, divinity, education, government, law, leadership, nursing, healthcare, and psychology. Regent University has been ranked the #1 Best Accredited Online College in the United States (Study.com, 2020), the #1 Safest College Campus in Virginia (YourLocalSecurity, 2021), and the #1 Best Online Bachelor’s Program in Virginia for 11 years in a row (U.S. News & World Report, 2023).

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VIRGINIA BEACH, VA (Mar. 14, 2023) – The Robertson Center for Constitutional Law just had its most active month since it was established in June of 2020.  In the past month, the Robertson Center filed a U.S. Supreme Court amicus brief in Groff v. DeJoy, filed an amicus brief in support of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes in a case before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, and represented two former members of Congress in a Department of Health and Human Services rulemaking proceeding regarding the conscience rights of healthcare workers.

The Robertson Center pairs scholarship and advocacy to promote first principles in constitutional law. The amicus brief in Groff v. DeJoy was the fifth U.S. Supreme Court amicus brief filed by the Robertson Center in less than three years. “It was an incredible learning experience to work on a U.S. Supreme Court brief and present our original research directly to the Court,” said Alex Touchet, Constitutional Law Fellow at the Robertson Center. “I can’t imagine a better way to start my legal career.”

“We launched the Robertson Center less than three years ago.  In that short time, we’ve already established a national reputation for excellence.  As our reputation has grown, so too have the opportunities for our faculty and students to participate in some high-profile matters,” said Brad Lingo, dean of Regent University’s School of Law.

Here’s a look at the Robertson Center’s recent matters:

Supreme Court Amicus Brief in Groff v. DeJoy, No. 22-174

The Robertson Center filed an amicus brief on February 28 asking the Supreme Court to overturn Trans World Airlines, Inc. v. Hardison, a 1977 case that weakened Title VII’s protections for religious employees.  The brief describes the Robertson Center’s original research showing that more than 80% of religious accommodation claims are brought by working-class Americans.  The brief asks the Court to restore the protections provided by the plain language of Title VII before religious, working-class Americans suffer more harm.

Ninth Circuit Amicus Brief in Fellowship of Christian Athletes v. San José Unified School District Board of Education, No. 22-15827

This is the second amicus brief the Robertson Center has filed before the Ninth Circuit in Fellowship of Christian Athletes.  The first brief, filed in 2022, supported the Fellowship of Christian Athletes student club on appeal after San José Unified School District stripped the club of its status as a fully recognized student organization at three high schools in the district.

After the en banc Ninth Circuit agreed to rehear the case, the Robertson Center filed this amicus brief on February 22 to reiterate its First Amendment and Equal Access Act arguments and to clarify aspects of the Equal Access Act that the lower court and the School District got wrong.

Written Comment Regarding the Department of Health and Human Services’ Notice of Proposed Rulemaking: Safeguarding the Rights of Conscience as Protected by Federal Statutes, 88 Fed. Reg. 820

The Robertson Center filed a written comment on behalf of Senator Daniel Coats and Representative David Weldon in a Department of Health and Human Services rulemaking proceeding. This comment comes three years after the Center filed an amicus brief in the Second Circuit on behalf of Senator Coats and Representative Weldon in New York v. U.S. Department of Health & Human Services in 2020.  There, the Center argued in support of the Department’s 2019 rule that enforced various federal conscience protections, including the Coats-Snowe Amendment and the Weldon Amendment.

Here, Senator Coats’ and Representative Weldon’s comment asks the Department to reject the erroneous reasoning put forth in the Department’s 2023 Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and to retain the protections provided by the 2019 iteration of that rule.

Learn more about the work of the Robertson Center for Constitutional Law at https://constitutionallaw.regent.edu/our-work/.

About the Robertson Center for Constitutional Law

The Robertson Center for Constitutional Law is an academic center within the Regent University School of Law.  Established in 2020, the Robertson Center pairs advocacy and scholarship to advance first principles in constitutional law, including originalism, separation of powers, and religious liberty.  The Robertson Center has represented former members of Congress, Christian ministries, and others in briefs before the U.S. Supreme Court and other appellate courts.

About Regent University

Founded in 1977, Regent University is America’s premier Christian university, with more than 13,000 students studying on its 70-acre campus in Virginia Beach, Virginia, and online around the world. The university offers associate, bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees in more than 150 areas of study including business, communication and the arts, counseling, cybersecurity, divinity, education, government, law, leadership, nursing, healthcare, and psychology. Regent University has been ranked the #1 Best Accredited Online College in the United States (Study.com, 2020), the #1 Safest College Campus in Virginia (YourLocalSecurity, 2021), and the #1 Best Online Bachelor’s Program in Virginia for 11 years in a row (U.S. News & World Report, 2023).

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Many court watchers view Dobbs as the most significant abortion case that the Supreme Court has taken in decades. In Dobbs, the court will consider the constitutionality of a Mississippi law prohibiting most abortions after 15 weeks. 

“Dobbs is the most significant abortion-related case in a generation,” said Professor Brad Lingo, executive director of the Robertson Center for Constitutional Law. “We’re grateful that the Robertson Center could play such a meaningful role and do it with a partner like the Christian Legal Society. We’re asking the Supreme Court to restore our constitutional traditions and return to the people the role of determining abortion-related policy.”

The work provided an opportunity for Regent Law students to get firsthand experience working on a Supreme Court brief. “It was an incredible learning experience to observe leading Christian constitutional lawyers strategize and craft a Supreme Court brief,” stated Gabrielle Bruno, a rising second-year student at Regent Law who serves as an intern at the Robertson Center for Constitutional Law. “My experience with the center deepened my understanding of appellate advocacy and sparked a passion to get more involved in this work.”

The Robertson Center for Constitutional Law is an academic center within the Regent University School of Law. Established in 2020, the center pairs advocacy and scholarship to advance first principles in constitutional law, including originalism, separation of powers, and religious liberty. The Robertson Center has represented former members of Congress, Christian ministries, and others in briefs before the U.S. Supreme Court and circuit courts of appeals. Learn more about the work of the Robertson Center at https://constitutionallaw.regent.edu/our-work/.

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About Regent University

Founded in 1978, Regent University is America’s premier Christian university with more than 11,000 students studying on its 70-acre campus in Virginia Beach, Virginia, and online around the world. The university offers associate, bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees in more than 150 areas of study, including business, communication and the arts, counseling, cybersecurity, divinity, education, government, law, leadership, nursing, healthcare, and psychology. Regent University, ranked among top national universities (U.S. News & World Report, 2020), is one of only 23 universities nationally to receive an “A” rating for its comprehensive liberal arts core curriculum.

About Regent Law

Regent Law’s more than 3,300 graduates practice law in 49 states and over 20 countries and include 38 currently sitting judges. The School of Law is currently ranked 22^nd in the nation for obtaining judicial clerkships and ranked 20^th in the nation for Ultimate Bar Passage in 2019. The school offers the Juris Doctor (J.D.) in three-year and part-time formats, an online M.A. in Law, an online M.A. in Financial Planning & Law, an on-campus and online LL.M. in Human Rights, and an on-campus and online LL.M. in American Legal Studies.

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