Sebelius v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc. (2014)

Posted by bradlemn on Tuesday, September 16, 2014 in Roundtables.

This Roundtable considered Sebelius v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc., which was argued at the Supreme Court on March 25, 2014. In Hobby Lobby, the Court considered whether Hobby Lobby is entitled to an exemption from the Affordable Care Act’s contraception mandate under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (“RFRA”). The Court could have addressed many questions: Is a for-profit corporation a “person” for the purposes of the RFRA? Would denying Hobby Lobby an exemption usher in an era of overly constrained religious liberty? Does an exemption from the mandate improperly impose the costs of religious observance onto third-party employees?

Professors Richard Garnett, Gregory Magarian, Andrew Koppelman, Frederick Gedicks, and James Oleske have each considered the precedents and offered their views on how the Court might—or should—approach this case in their “First Takes” essays below.

Then, the authors will respond to one another’s arguments in the “Responses” phase of the Roundtable. We hope you find this Roundtable to be both informative and engaging.