Catholic Charities Bureau v. Wisconsin Labor & Industry Review Commission
Description: A Catholic charitable organization is challenging a court ruling that forces it into paying a state unemployment program rather than opt out and join a religious unemployment program.
ADF to US Supreme Court: Govt can't judge religiosity
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. Supreme Court in Catholic Charities Bureau v. Wisconsin Labor & Industry Review Commission. ADF attorneys filed the brief on behalf of By the Hand Club for Kids, an Illinois ministry that is asking the high court to overturn a Wisconsin Supreme Court ruling that creates an unconstitutional test to determine the sincerity of religious organizations’ outreach efforts:
“Government has no business second-guessing a faith organization’s purpose. To do so would unconstitutionally entangle church and state—all at the expense of ministries that live out their faith, at least in part, through serving their communities. Under the Wisconsin Supreme Court’s test, government officials will inevitably favor religious views and activities they are familiar with, while excluding those that are either unfamiliar or disfavored. Just because Catholic Charities serves a diverse range of people outside its congregation doesn’t mean that its outreach efforts of providing for the elderly, people with disabilities, and those in poverty qualify as ‘secular’ activities. We are urging the Supreme Court to review and reverse this ruling that strikes at the very core of the First Amendment.”
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.