Julian Wright Discusses Religious Discrimination Case with Bloomberg News

Bloomberg News spoke with Robinson Bradshaw attorney Julian H. Wright Jr. regarding a pending case over whether the religious exemption to Title VII and a religious organization’s First Amendment rights allow it to discriminate against non-ministerial employees on the basis of race, national origin or sex.

The case stems from a local Catholic school’s decision to fire a teacher after he posted about his same-sex wedding on social media. A North Carolina federal judge previously ruled in the teacher’s favor, finding that he was unlawfully discriminated against on the basis of sex in violation of Title VII. Robinson Bradshaw represents several religious organizations as amici in the case.

Ahead of the Fourth Circuit arguments, Wright weighed in on the fine line drawn in federal protections for religious employers. The article shared Wright believes the law “currently strikes the right balance between religious freedom and society’s interest in shielding workers from discrimination.”

The article, “Gay Teacher’s Case Latest to Probe Religion-Sex Bias Boundaries,” is available here with a subscription.