United States Ninth Circuit
Alcazar v. Corp. of the Catholic Archbishop of Seattle, 09-35003
In an action seeking pay for the overtime hours plaintiff worked as a seminarian in a Catholic church in Washington, dismissal of the action is affirmed where the ministerial exception barred the claim because: 1) the First Amendment strongly circumscribed legislative and judicial intrusion into the internal affairs of a religious organization; 2) awarding damages would necessarily trench on the Church's protected ministerial decisions; and 3) plaintiff's complaint demonstrated that plaintiff was a minister for purposes of the ministerial exception.
Appellate Information
- Decided 03/16/2010
- Published 03/16/2010
Judges
Court
- United States Ninth Circuit