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This case involves a state law prohibiting government workers from receiving spousal benefits if they are married to someone of the same sex. At issue is whether Obergefell, the U.S. Supreme Court case finding prohibitions against same-sex marriage unconstitutional, compels states only to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, or compels states to afford same-sex couples equal treatment under the law, including access to public benefits. The Texas Supreme Court interpreted Obergefell…

This case poses the question to the Second Circuit Court of Appeals of whether someone can legally be fired just because of their sexual orientation. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits discrimination “because of. . . sex,” but, so far, only the Seventh Circuit has held that this prohibition extends to sexual orientation. ADL joined a coalition of diverse bar associations and LGBT groups on an amicus brief arguing that that the Second Circuit should overturn its…

Gavin Grimm, a 17-year-old transgender boy who attends a public high school in Virginia, sued the school board after it passed a resolution banning him and transgender students generally from using the restrooms that match their gender identity. At issue in the case is whether the school board’s policy is unlawful sex discrimination under Title IX of the Education Amendments. ADL joined an amicus brief filed by eight religious and civil rights groups. The record in the case and numerous…

At issue in this case is President Trump’s second executive order on refugees which, among other things, temporarily banned travel from six majority-Muslim countries and suspended refugee resettlement in the United States for a period of 120 days. ADL had filed an amicus brief in the district court in Hawaii urging it to block enforcement of the executive order, which the court did on March 14, 2017. This brief, which was signed by the Jewish Council for Public Affairs, the Union for…

At issue in this case is a for-profit employer’s assertion of the federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act (“RFRA”) as legal defense to a violation of a federal workplace anti-discrimination law – Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Acts. A trial court found that a for-profit funeral home violated Title VII by firing a transgender female employee based on sex-stereotyping. The court, however, in an unprecedented ruling found that RFRA exempted the employer from the…

At issue in this case is President Trump’s second executive order on refugees and immigration, which among other things temporarily barred travel for people from six majority-Muslim countries. ADL, joined by the Jewish Council for Public Affairs, the Union for Reform Judaism, the Central Conference of American Rabbis, and Women of Reform Judaism, filed an amicus brief in support of the challenge to the executive order. The brief urges the Court to uphold the District Court’s…

At issue in this case is President Trump’s Executive Order (EO) on immigration and refugees. ADL filed an amicus brief in support of the plaintiffs’ challenge to the EO. The brief urges the Court to issue a preliminary injunction, blocking implementation of the EO’s temporary ban on entry into the United States of people from seven majority-Muslim nations. The brief traces America’s history as a nation dedicated to ideals of equality, liberty and justice, and warns…

This case involved allegations of racial bias on the part of a juror in a 2010 sexual assault trial in Colorado. Following a guilty verdict at trial, two jurors reported that a third juror had expressed racial bias against the defendant, who is Latino, during jury deliberations. The trial court denied the defendant’s motion for a new trial and refused to consider those statements of racial bias, finding that a Colorado rule of evidence barred their admission as evidence. ADL joined with…

Grutter v. Bollinger concerns the constitutionality of racial preferences in undergraduate and law school admissions system of the University of Michigan. While recognizing the fundamental value of diversity in higher education, ADL stated its opposition to the University of Michigan's admissions programs to achieve that goal.