Micah Schwartzman

Does blocking people on twitter because they asked some critical/clarifying questions violate the Rapoport Rules and the internal morality of reasoned disagreement? (Asking for everyone who isn't an integralist.)

papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....

Mazel!

This from my incomparable colleague, Caleb Nelson, on originalism and the unitary executive theory.

Here's the text of the law: www.kslegislature.gov/li_2021s/b20.... /end.

That's also what's happening here: employers must grant exemptions even if employees make fraudulent claims, and no matter how costly the exemption is for the employer. If Caldor is good law (a big if under this Court), this law goes too far and should be tested under the Establishment Clause. /3

ESTATE OF Donald E. THORNTON and Connecticut, Petitioners, v. CALDOR, INC.

This looks like a violation of the Establishment Clause under Estate of Thornton v. Caldor, which invalidated an exemption that gave "unyielding weight[] in favor of" religion over all other interests. www.law.cornell.edu/supremecourt... /2

Kansas passed a law making it illegal for hospitals (or any employer) to require COVID vaccination unless they grant a religious exemption -- with no inquiry into the sincerity of those who claim it. Basically, employers must allow automatic exemptions. (h/t @doritreiss.bsky.social). /1

ESTATE OF Donald E. THORNTON and Connecticut, Petitioners, v. CALDOR, INC.

This looks like a violation of the Establishment Clause under Estate of Thornton v. Caldor, which invalidated an exemption that gave "unyielding weight[] in favor of" religion over all other interests. /2 www.law.cornell.edu/supremecourt...

Pretty sure I got blocked on Twitter for asking a version of this question — back when it was still Twitter.

Also exceedingly rare for a court to cite Schragger, Schwartzman, and Tebbe, but lo and behold.

Announcement2025 Annual Conference of NOMOS : Capitalism and Socialism American Society for Political and Legal Philosophy – September 26, 2025, 12:00-6:45 EST

📢 NOMOS 2025 Annual Conference: Capitalism and Socialism

Panels on value & money

🗓 Sept 26, 12–6:45 PM EST | Hybrid: Harvard Safra Center + Zoom

justmoney.org/2025-annual-...

Session 3 on Proof — philosophy and law of evidence, with Walter Sinnott-Armstrong, Ed Chang, Alex Stein, and Kim Ferzan.

Rules and Reasons: A Conference for Fred Schauer An interdisciplinary and international group of scholars will explore the legacy of the late UVA Law professor Frederick Schauer, a world-renowned scholar whose work spanned law and philosophy, eviden...

Honoring Fred Schauer today: www.law.virginia.edu/event/rules-...

New school year brings mandatory gun safety lessons for students in some states All students in Tennessee public and charter schools must begin annual firearm safety lessons after the state became the first to pass a law requiring the training.

Are there Mahmoud-compliant notifications and opt-outs for mandatory gun education in kindergarten?

www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2025/...

Sunstein seems to think it’s an open question in religious liberty cases whether the government’s interest in prohibiting discrimination against gay people is as strong as its interest in prohibiting animal cruelty. That does make me wonder if he thinks that’s also true for race discrimination?

Rules and Reasons: A Conference for Fred Schauer An interdisciplinary and international group of scholars will explore the legacy of the late UVA Law professor Frederick Schauer, a world-renowned scholar whose work spanned law and philosophy, eviden...

This conference in honor and memory of Fred Schauer is open to the public and will be held at @uvalaw.bsky.social on Sept. 11-12. The full schedule of panels and speakers is linked below.

www.law.virginia.edu/event/rules-...

Registration is open for the NOMOS conference on Capitalism and Socialism. The Zoom and registration links, as well as the final schedule and paper titles are available at www.political-theory.org. With thanks to the Edmond & Lily Safra Center for Ethics @harvard.edu for hosting.

CT Jewish leaders denounce new rules for federal security grants Recipients of the nonprofit security grant will be prohibited from DEI programming, staging some boycotts or helping undocumented immigrants.

This seems like a good issue for Becket-supported religious liberty clinics:

ctmirror.org/2025/08/22/c...

Blain is right that this isn’t responsive to the criticism. Rawls never claims there is no ask. Obviously there is. The issue is whether everyone has to answer it in the same way. So us political liberals olds don’t think nouveau-perfectionist liberals get to slide past this problem.

If this piece relies on a “Cliff notes” reading of Rawls, then maybe it’s time to throw away the notes and read what Rawls actually wrote. (h/t @neufeld.bsky.social)

A Free Exercise 'Blueprint' In Colo. Abortion Reversal Order - Law360 A Colorado federal judge's decision to allow medication abortion "reversals" on free exercise grounds could serve as a model for other lawsuits meant to legitimize a practice that is outside the stand...

Prof. @micahschwartzman.bsky.social ’05 discusses a judge’s ruling applying the free exercise clause in allowing access to treatment to reverse medication abortions. @law360.bsky.social

In Kluge, CA7 today reinstated a public school teacher's claim for a religious accommodation to avoid calling transgender students by their chosen names. Judge Rovner's dissent cites and quotes @profjdnelson.bsky.social's article, Disestablishment at Work, www.yalelawjournal.org/article/dise...:

That’s not how this works, unless you’re a legislator, and then this is how that works.

Here's the CA9 opinion: cdn.ca9.uscourts.gov/datastore/op...

CA9 panel holds that Oregon policy requiring adoptive parents to respect a child's sexual orientation/gender identity favored one religion over another, citing the Court's recent Establishment Clause decision in Catholic Charities.

So if you tell the state that its abortion ban violates your faith?

For a bit of context on the broader argument here, I wrote this back in May 2022 (before many of these cases were filed): religionnews.com/2022/05/17/w...

Big update in a case I wrote about almost exactly 2 years ago www.politico.com/news/2023/06...

Jewish woman’s challenge of Kentucky’s abortion ban gets green light from appeals court A Court of Appeals panel has ruled that one of three Jewish women suing the state has standing — the right — to challenge Kentucky’s abortion ban.

This is an important religious liberty challenge advancing in the Kentucky state courts. There’s a growing literature discussing the arguments developed in this case and in similar litigation in Indiana. (See eg papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....)

LISA SOBEL, ET AL. v. RUSSELL COLEMAN, IN HIS OFFICIAL CAPACITY AS ATTORNEY GENERAL OF THE COMMONWEALTH OF KENTUCKY, ET AL. LISA SOBEL, ET AL. v. RUSSELL COLEMAN, IN HIS OFFICIAL CAPACITY AS ATTORNEY GENERAL OF THE COMMONWEALTH OF KENTUCKY, ET AL.

In the most Kentucky decision ever, a state appellate court revives a religious liberty challenge to the state abortion ban, finding that a plaintiff has standing by comparing her claim to those of a racehorse owner who wanted to buy more horses at Churchill Downs.

law.justia.com/cases/kentuc...

SORAAAD "Reestablishing Religion" A Conversation with Richard Schragger, Micah Schwartzman, & Nelson Tebbe Religion, Authoritarianism, & Public Narratives - Part 4 18 August 2025

Monday 18 Aug 2025
10:00-11:30 AM CST | -6 UTC
"Reestablishing Religion" A Conversation w/ @richschragger.bsky.social @micahschwartzman.bsky.social & @nelsontebbe.bsky.social

Religion, Authoritarianism & Public Narratives prt 4

Article lawreview.uchicago.edu/print-archiv...
Register soraaad.org