Skip to main content

Robertson Center for Constitutional Law Celebrates Victory for Religious Liberty

 VIRGINIA BEACH, VA (June 22, 2021) – On June 17, 2021, the United States Supreme Court issued a unanimous ruling in favor of Catholic Social Services in Fulton v. City of Philadelphia. The same day, the Robertson Center for Constitutional Law also filed a brief with the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in Maxon v. Fuller Theological Seminary. June 17 was a monumental day for the Robertson Center for Constitutional Law and–more importantly–a monumental day for religious liberty in the United States.


“As these cases demonstrate, the center gives our students and faculty a platform to influence some of today’s most important matters of constitutional law,” stated Mark Martin, dean of Regent University School of Law. “We celebrate this work today and will continue our advocacy to preserve, protect, and uphold the Constitution of the United States.” 

The U.S. Supreme Court issued a long-awaited decision concerning religious liberty on June 17. It came in the form of a unanimous 9-0 ruling in favor of Catholic Social Services and foster mothers Sharonell Fulton and Toni Simms-Busch in Fulton v. City of Philadelphia. The Robertson Center filed an important brief in June 2020 in support of the prevailing parties.  

The Robertson Center’s brief argued that the Court should overrule Employment Division v. Smith, a 1990 case that eroded protections for the free exercise of religion. In December 2020, the Robertson Center built on that brief by publishing an article in the Regent University Law Review exploring developments since Smith was decided thirty years ago. Although the Court in Fulton stopped short of overruling Smith, Fulton was the first U.S. Supreme Court decision in which a majority of Supreme Court Justices agreed that Smith should be overruled. 

“It was a heartening surprise to see every single Supreme Court Justice rule in favor of religious liberty,” said Brad Lingo, professor at Regent University School of Law and executive director of the Robertson Center for Constitutional Law. “It’s rewarding to know that our advocacy mattered in this case.”

The same day as the U.S. Supreme Court ruling, the Robertson Center also filed a friend-of-the-court brief with the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in Maxon v. Fuller Theological Seminary. In this case, the Robertson Center represented Campus Crusade for Christ, Intervarsity Christian Fellowship, Chi Alpha Ministries, and Young Life in defending the importance of the First Amendment’s rights of assembly and expressive association.  

The Robertson Center for Constitutional Law is an academic center within the Regent University School of Law. Established in 2020, the Center pairs advocacy and scholarship to advance first principles in constitutional law, including originalism, separation of powers, and religious liberty. The Robertson Center has represented former members of Congress, Christian ministries, and others in briefs before the U.S. Supreme Court and circuit courts of appeal. Learn more about the work of the Robertson Center at https://constitutionallaw.regent.edu/our-work/.

 

###

 

About Regent University

Founded in 1978, Regent University is America’s premier Christian university with more than 11,000 students studying on its 70-acre campus in Virginia Beach, Virginia, and online around the world. The university offers associate, bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees in more than 150 areas of study including business, communication and the arts, counseling, cybersecurity, divinity, education, government, law, leadership, nursing, healthcare, and psychology. Regent University, ranked among top national universities (U.S. News & World Report, 2020), is one of only 23 universities nationally to receive an “A” rating for its comprehensive liberal arts core curriculum.

 

About Regent Law

Regent Law’s more than 3,300 graduates practice law in 49 states and over 20 countries and include 38 currently sitting judges. The School of Law is currently ranked 22nd in the nation for obtaining judicial clerkships and ranked 20th in the nation for Ultimate Bar Passage in 2019. The school offers the Juris Doctor (J.D.) in three-year and part-time formats, an online M.A. in Law, an online M.A. in Financial Planning & Law, an on-campus and online LL.M. in Human Rights, and an on-campus and online LL.M. in American Legal Studies.

Popular posts from this blog

Hernandez Appointed as Regent University School of Law Dean

Michael Hernandez and Jeffrey Brauch. Bar passage rates were a lackluster 40 percent when Jeffrey A. Brauch was appointed interim dean of the Regent University School of Law in 1999. Brauch knew a curriculum overhaul was needed to better prepare students, and he turned to trusted law school colleagues to lead the curriculum reforms, including Michael Hernandez, who played a central role. Fast forward 16 years, and Regent’s bar passage rates have improved significantly, exceeding the Virginia average in four of the past five years. Also, the school, the students and the faculty have earned numerous accolades under Brauch’s leadership. Now, Brauch is returning to the classroom, and Hernandez, a seasoned legal professor and faculty adviser of the nation’s 8th ranked Moot Court program, has been appointed dean of the Regent University School of Law, with the transition beginning immediately. “We’ve had a great run with Jeff as our leader. He has done an excellent job ...
Read more

Regent Law Hires Two New Faculty Members—Both Yale Law Graduates—for Fall 2022

VIRGINIA BEACH, VA (July 5, 2022) – Today, Regent University School of Law announced the appointment of two new members of its faculty, Erin Morrow Hawley and David D. Velloney.  Both Hawley and Velloney are graduates of Yale Law School.  Professor Hawley will teach constitutional law and serve as a senior fellow at the Robertson Center for Constitutional Law.  Professor Velloney will focus on criminal law, military law, and constitutional criminal procedure.   Professors Hawley and Velloney are the third and fourth professors added to the Regent Law faculty in the past year.  “We are incredibly fortunate to attract such exceptional teachers, mentors, and scholars to our faculty,” said Brad Lingo, dean of Regent University School of Law.  “Our students will love learning from professors Hawley and Velloney and benefit from the depth of experience and Christian perspectives they bring.” New Faculty Appointments: Erin Morrow Hawley: Associate Pro...
Read more

Three More Regent Law Alumni Appointed as Judges

Three more Regent University School of Law alumni have been appointed to judgeships, bringing the total number of Regent Law alumni currently serving on the bench to 28. The Virginia General Assembly filled eight vacant judgeships during a special session on Thursday, September 18. Earle C. Mobley ’89 was appointed as a judge for the Portsmouth Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court. Mobley has served as the commonwealth’s attorney in Portsmouth since 2002. Phillip C. Hollowell ’98 was appointed to the Virginia Beach Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court. Most recently, Hollowell has served as deputy commonwealth’s attorney in Virginia Beach. David Morgan Barredo '01 was appointed Culpeper County’s Deputy Commonwealth’s Attorney, as the new Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court Judge for Virginia’s 16th District. In addition, Joseph A. Migliozzi ’94 (pictured) , who had been serving as a judge in Norfolk General District Court since 2009, was promoted to the Norfolk Circui...
Read more