Our Lady of Guadalupe School v. Morrissey-Berru, 140 S. Ct. 2049 (2020)

Facts

  • Our Lady of Guadalupe School (OLGS) and St. James School were Roman Catholic elementary schools in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles.
  • Agnes Morrissey-Berru was a lay “general teacher” at OLGS; Kristen Biel was a lay “general teacher” at St. James.
  • Both schools’ materials (including teacher contracts and faculty handbooks) described a Catholic mission and stated expectations for teachers tied to religious instruction, worship, and modeling the faith.
  • Both Morrissey-Berru and Biel taught religion daily as part of their assigned duties and used a Catholic-based curriculum.
  • Both teachers participated in school worship activities, prayed with students, and helped prepare students for participation in Catholic religious life.
  • Both teachers were evaluated in part using religious criteria related to carrying out the schools’ mission.
  • OLGS did not renew Morrissey-Berru’s contract; she sued in federal court alleging age discrimination under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA).
  • St. James did not renew Biel’s contract after she sought leave related to breast cancer treatment; she sued in federal court alleging disability discrimination under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
  • In each case, the federal district court granted summary judgment to the school, holding that the First Amendment’s “ministerial exception” barred the claim.
  • The Ninth Circuit reversed in both cases, reasoning that the teachers lacked the ministerial title, training, and “holding out” present in Hosanna-Tabor.
  • The Supreme Court granted certiorari, consolidated the cases, and reviewed whether the ministerial exception applied to these teachers.

Issues

  1. Do the First Amendment’s Religion Clauses bar civil-court adjudication of employment-discrimination claims by elementary-school teachers at Catholic schools when the teachers performed important religious functions but lacked formal ministerial titles and training?
  2. In determining whether the ministerial exception applies, should courts focus mainly on formal markers (title, training, self-presentation) or on the religious functions the employee performs?

Decision

  • The Court held, 7–2, that the ministerial exception barred both Morrissey-Berru’s ADEA claim and Biel’s ADA claim.
  • The Court reversed the Ninth Circuit and remanded.
  • The Court rejected using Hosanna-Tabor as a checklist and stated that the core inquiry is what the employee does.
  • Because the schools entrusted both teachers with teaching the faith and guiding students in religious exercise, judicial review of the nonrenewal decisions would intrude on church autonomy.

Legal Principles

  • The Religion Clauses protect a religious institution’s right to decide, without government interference, matters of internal governance connected to faith and doctrine, including selecting key employees who carry out the religious mission.
  • The “ministerial exception” bars employment-discrimination suits by employees who perform duties that involve conveying the faith and carrying out the institution’s religious mission.
  • Whether an employee is covered does not turn on a single factor or formula; job title, training, and self-description may matter, but they are not required.
  • When an employee’s responsibilities include teaching religion, leading prayer, participating in religious services with students, and being evaluated on religious criteria, those functions can place the employee within the ministerial exception.
  • Civil courts may not second-guess a religious school’s employment decisions about such employees when doing so would require courts to evaluate or supervise how the school delivers religious instruction and practice.

Conclusion

The Supreme Court concluded that the First Amendment barred Morrissey-Berru’s and Biel’s discrimination suits because, even as lay teachers without formal ministerial titles, they were assigned significant responsibility for religious instruction and prayer in Catholic elementary schools, placing them within the ministerial exception and outside civil-court review of their employment-discrimination claims.