Search Results

Despite the official separation of church and state, religious questions often arise and need to be adjudicated in secular courts. This course explores which rights are protected by the Constitution’s free exercise clause and examines the boundaries of religion and religious protections in a secular context. Specifically, the course examines the ways in which secular American courts handle issues that arise in communities that follow religious law but also use the civil courts to settle their disputes. Students will study the ways in which secular courts must decide questions from marriage and divorce to raising children and custody issues in a wide variety of faith communities and how those courts incorporate or distance themselves from the religious frameworks in which those disputes arise.