SCOTUS moves to uphold religious freedom rights 

After meeting to conference on our Does v. Hochul New York vax mandate case seven times, the Supreme Court directed the U.S. Solicitor General to file a brief expressing the views of the United States. A few weeks ago, we met with the Solicitor General’s legal team along with legal representatives of the Department of Justice, HHS, and EEOC. The defendants then met with the group. Now the Solicitor General is preparing their brief. If the brief of the United States urges the High Court to take up this case, I will present the arguments later this year.

In addition to the above, another critical development occurred, which I will share below. Our urgent need is for you to pray for a favorable brief from the United States. 

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In December, the U.S. Supreme Court granted the petition, vacated the judgment, and remanded Miller v. McDonald back down to the lower courts to review in light of the High Court’s decision in Mahmoud v. Taylor. The implications of this order are nothing short of staggering — in the best possible way!

In Miller v. McDonald, the State of New York refused to grant religious shot exemptions to an Amish community in which Amish children were educated in their own private Amish school, on the Amish community’s own private land, taught solely by Amish teachers. New York recognized medical but not religious exemptions — just like in our case. 

New York’s action in Miller is the same religious discrimination we are fighting in our case, Does v. Hochul, where Christian employers and employees were also unlawfully denied their federal religious exemption rights under Title VII, and were subsequently run out of business and the jobs by the state solely over their religious beliefs.

But here’s what is interesting. On its face, Mahmoud v. Taylor, which the High Court decided in June 2025, was about a parent’s right to exempt their child from LGBTQ indoctrination. But, in ordering the lower court to reconsider the Miller case in light of Mahmoud, the Court is signaling that Mahmoud was not only about the LGBTQ indoctrination or even public schools.

The High Court is sending a message that parental rights based on religious free exercise are broader than the facts in Mahmoud. Moreover, the right to free exercise of religion is also broader than parental rights. The implications of the Amish case and our Does case are far reaching. 

Don’t let woke politicians ROB Christians of their religious freedom RIGHTS!

Certainly, because Miller v. McDaniel is, on its face, about New York’s unlawful revocation of religious exemptions for vaccines, the High Court’s remand here is highly favorable for our NY shot case, Does v. Hochul. 

But such a line of thinking also impacts at least two of the major cases we are arguing or briefing:

Chiles v. Salazar — Christian Counseling Bans: If parents have a right to raise their child in their faith, then they also have the right to take their child to a Christian counselor, whether or not such a religious practice is favored by local and state politicians. Liberty Counsel briefed this case, and oral arguments were presented to the Supreme Court on October 7. We await the High Court’s final decision. 

Bickford v. Bradeen — No Church, No Bible custody order: If parents have the right to raise their child in accordance with their religion, then no court can ban a parent from taking their own child to church or instructing their child in the tenets of their faith. I delivered oral arguments before the Maine Supreme Court last month, and we await that court’s decision. If the Maine Supreme Court does not uphold Emily Bickford’s religious freedom rights, we will immediately appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.

But SCOTUS’ move on Miller is not the end of the story. And, most importantly, the High Court asked the Solicitor General to weigh in on our New York Does case. We’ve met with the Solicitor General and staff, as has the opposition. We now await the Solicitor’s brief to the High Court. If the Solicitor General takes interest in the case, it is almost certain I will be presenting oral arguments before the High Court this fall. 

We still have to make these arguments to the High Court in each of these cases — and we cannot do that without YOU.

In our 36-year history, Liberty Counsel has won 40 cases we have argued or briefed before the U.S. Supreme Court and thousands more in the lower courts. We NEVER charge our clients because we know most people could never afford to defend their rights all the way up to the highest Court in the land. Instead, our clients rely on YOU, the faithful Liberty Counsel supporter, who always makes sure our legal fund is full so that we can defend religious freedom for all generations to come. DOUBLE YOUR GIFT with our Challenge Grant.