Archive for the ‘Religion’ Category

Heavenly Music: Music Director Is a “Minister” so Lawsuit Is Dismissed

Authored By: Dana E. Stutzman


Discrimination Laws Don’t Apply to Religious “Ministers”

In the realm of employment law, the “ministerial exception” prohibits the application of federal anti-discrimination laws to claims concerning the employment relationship between a religious institution and its ministers.  Exactly who qualifies as a minister under the ministerial exception is being determined by the courts on a case-by-case basis.  Recently, the Fifth Circuit, which covers Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas, concluded that a music director at a catholic church was a minister for purposes of the ministerial exception.  Because the ministerial exception applied, the music director’s lawsuit was dismissed. (more…)

Physician’s Harassment Claim Fails – Only a Personality Conflict

Authored By: Stephen W. Lyman


Complaints of harassment don’t always result in liability for an employer.  Here’s a case in point.

A Syrian born Muslim physician employed at Stroger Hospital in Cook County wrote letters and lodged formal complaints over the years about his treatment by a female coworker who was also a physician in the same department.  The physician complained of the “friction that exists” between him and his coworker, her “domineering attitude,” her “creating a private practice atmosphere” and her “overflowing her clinic with patients.”  Later he wrote another letter stating that he had been “discriminated against,” “disrespected,” and that she “created an atmosphere of confusion and chaos.”  Another letter then asserted that the conduct of the department head in failing to prevent the harassment was a form of “favoritism, harassment and feeling of grandiosity.”  Ultimately he wrote a letter to the president of the medical staff complaining of “frank discrimination” by his coworker and the department head.  (more…)