Washington state dodged a lawsuit seeking to block it from enforcing its anti-discrimination law against a Christian nonprofit that wants to hire only other Christians, with a federal judge ruling that the organization hasn't shown it's likely to face investigation.
A Washington federal court granted state Attorney General Bob Ferguson's motion to dismiss a nonprofit's suit seeking to bar the state from using the Washington Law Against Discrimination to target the nonprofit's refusal to employ people who don't adhere to Christian beliefs about sex. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)
U.S. District Judge Mary K. Dimke in a
29-page opinion Friday granted Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson's motion to dismiss the Union Gospel Mission of Yakima's lawsuit, which sought to bar the state from using the Washington Law Against Discrimination, or WLAD, to target the nonprofit's refusal to employ people who don't adhere to the Christian belief that sex should occur only between husband and wife.
The Yakima Union Gospel Mission said in a March complaint that it was concerned the attorney general and state human rights commission would enforce the anti-bias statute in line with the state Supreme Court's decision in Woods v. Seattle's Union Gospel Mission. In that case, the court ruled that the religious exemption to the state anti-discrimination law doesn't protect nonprofit religious organizations' hiring practices from liability unless the employees are ministers.
But Judge Dimke said the Yakima, Washington-based nonprofit pointed to only one instance in which the attorney general launched an investigation into a Christian university's employment policies under Woods, which isn't enough to show a pattern of past enforcement.
"The court finds that YUGM has failed to demonstrate a credible threat of prosecution by AG Ferguson," Judge Dimke said. "YUGM has not met its burden to establish an injury in fact."
The Yakima Union Gospel Mission
claimed in its suit that it regularly receives job applications from people who openly disagree with its religious beliefs on marriage and sexuality, which has caused it to stop posting job openings for positions that wouldn't be protected by the so-called ministerial exception.
The nonprofit pointed to the attorney general's investigation of whether
Seattle Pacific University's hiring practices discriminate against people in same-sex relationships in violation of the WLAD, saying it fears the state could launch a similar probe into its policies.
Seattle Pacific asked a federal court to block the attorney general's investigation, but the case
was tossed in October. The
school's appeal of the dismissal is pending before the Ninth Circuit.
Agreeing with the state's argument, Judge Dimke said in Friday's opinion that the Yakima Union Gospel Mission's suit "is really a veiled attempt to seek appellate review from Woods."
According to the opinion, the nonprofit didn't categorize its suit as a review of Woods, but it asked the court to rule that the state Supreme Court's holding in Woods is unconstitutional, which would effectively reverse the decision.
"Accordingly, the relief YUGM seeks from the court is prohibited," Judge Dimke wrote.
Alliance Defending Freedom senior counsel Ryan Tucker, who is representing the Yakima Union Gospel Mission, said in a statement provided to Law360 that the court's decision was a disappointment not only for the mission, "but for all religious organizations in the state of Washington."
"Religious organizations should be able to hire people that agree with the work they do and the beliefs that motivate them to do it," Tucker said. "We are looking at all legal options for the Mission to continue serving the community while still adhering to their Christian beliefs."
Representatives of the
Washington Attorney General's Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday.
The Union Gospel Mission of Yakima is represented by Katherine Anderson, Ryan Tucker, Jeremiah Galus and Jacob Reed of the Alliance Defending Freedom and by David K. DeWolf of
Albrecht Law Firm.
The state is represented by Daniel J. Jeon and David Ward of the Washington Attorney General's Office.
The case is Union Gospel Mission of Yakima, Washington v. Robert Ferguson et al., case number
1:23-cv-03027, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Washington.
--Additional reporting by Lauren Berg. Editing by Khalid Adad.
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