Religious employers are protected from discrimination claims made by their own ministers, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled unanimously Jan. 11.
In its first ruling addressing the ministerial exception that is often read into the U.S. Constitution, the Court determined that “there is such a ministerial exception,” and that it bars ministers from bringing employment discrimination claims against their religious employers.
In this particular case, it barred Cheryl Perich, a teacher who taught mostly secular subjects but was deemed a “minister” by her church, from bringing an Americans With Disabilities Act claim against her employer. Perich said she was fired for pursuing an employment discrimination claim based on a disability, narcolepsy.
The ruling overturns the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals’ opinion in the case, which determined that Perich could not be a minister because her duties were identical to those of lay teachers.
The High Court disagreed with that ruling, finding that “[t]he ministerial exception is not limited to the head of a religious congregation.” However, the Court said it would “not adopt a rigid formula for deciding when an employee qualifies as a minister.” In light of … the formal title given Perich by the Church, the substance reflected in that title, her own use of that title, and the important religious functions she performed for the Church — we conclude that Perich was a minister covered by the ministerial exception,” the Court said.
“The purpose of the exception is not to safeguard a church’s decision to fire a minister only when it is made for a religious reason,” the Court concluded. “The exception instead ensures that the authority to select and control who will minister to the faithful is the church’s alone.” (Hosanna-Tabor Evangelical Lutheran Church and School v. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, No. 10-552, 2012 WL 75047 (Jan. 11, 2012))