On Tuesday, the federal court for the Western District of New York denied a motion to dismiss a Title VII suit on ministerial grounds. The so-called “ministerial exception” to Title VII protects churches from discrimination suits based on church employment decisions, when those decisions relate to matters of church governance and “internal organization.” The New York case, 2008 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 40386, seems to be a case of bad pleading more than anything else. The plaintiff claimed sexual discrimination, and the Diocese of Rochester claimed the ministerial exception, without explaining any way that the hiring-and-firing issue related to internal church concerns. It merely asserted that its “vicarious liability could not be determined without ‘penetrating discovery and microscopic examination by litigation of the Diocese’s disciplinary procedures and subsequent responsive decisions.’” The court, understandably, was hesitant to accept such a conclusory argument at face value without some more explanation, and apparently, nothing more was offered. It seems that the lesson here, for those churches wishing to claim the ministerial exception, is to be sure to make it painfully obvious to the court that First Amendment values (genuine exercise of religion) are at stake. Don’t make the court guess about this.

Hat tip: Religion Clause.