Section 3 Free Exercise Clause

• Library: Prof Liability 2005

The free exercise clause provides that Congress shall make no law “prohibiting the free exercise” of religion. U.S. Const. amend. I. The clause restricts the government’s ability to interfere with a church’s governance of its own affairs. Kedroff v. St. Nicholas Cathedral of Russian Orthodox Church in N. Am., 344 U.S. 94, 116 (1952).

Courts evaluating free exercise clause cases must weigh three factors:

1. The magnitude of the impact on the exercise of the religious belief

2. The existence of a compelling state interest that justifies the burden imposed on the exercise of the religious belief

3. The extent to which recognition of an...