Carter v. Southwest Airlines
Description: A flight attendant sued Southwest Airlines for firing her because of her religious beliefs.
ADF qualified to provide training on anti-religious discrimination in workplace
The following quote may be attributed to Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Counsel and Vice President of Appellate Advocacy John Bursch, regarding a friend-of-the-court brief ADF attorneys filed Thursday with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit in Carter v. Southwest Airlines, in which a federal district court ordered in-house attorneys with Southwest Airlines to attend religious liberty training as part of a ruling in favor of a flight attendant whom the court determined the airline fired because of her religious beliefs:
“Alliance Defending Freedom is a nationally recognized and respected law firm that is well qualified to provide Title VII legal training about anti-religious discrimination in the workplace. ADF attorneys have a long history of litigating matters involving religious liberty rights that specifically involve Title VII. ADF attorneys have provided legal training in venues across the country that have been approved for continuing legal education credit, and they have provided legal training as part of the resolution of litigation in other First Amendment cases. Since 2011, ADF has represented parties in 15 victories at the U.S. Supreme Court and has played a prominent role in 74 Supreme Court victories over the last 30 years. ADF is well suited to provide comprehensive and professional legal training about the religious liberty requirements of Title VII.”
Alliance Defending Freedom is an alliance-building, non-profit legal organization committed to protecting religious freedom, free speech, parental rights, and the sanctity of life.
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ABOUT John Bursch
John Bursch is senior counsel and vice president of appellate advocacy with Alliance Defending Freedom. Bursch has argued 12 U.S. Supreme Court cases and more than 30 state supreme court cases since 2011, and a recent study concluded that among all frequent Supreme Court advocates who did not work for the federal government, he had the 3rd highest success rate for persuading justices to adopt his legal position. Bursch served as solicitor general for the state of Michigan from 2011-2013. He has argued multiple Michigan Supreme Court cases in eight of the last ten terms and has successfully litigated hundreds of matters nationwide, including six with at least $1 billion at stake. As part of his private firm, Bursch Law PLLC, he has represented Fortune 500 companies, foreign and domestic governments, top public officials, and industry associations in high-profile cases, primarily on appeal. He received his J.D. magna cum laude in 1997 from the University of Minnesota Law School and is admitted to practice in numerous federal district and appellate courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court.