What’s at Stake in 303 Creative LLC v. Elenis
Document Type
Article
Publication Title
First Things
Publication Date
12-12-2022
Abstract
(Excerpt)
Last week, the Supreme Court heard argument in 303 Creative LLC v. Elenis, the latest in a series of wedding vendor cases that have been percolating in the courts. These cases involve small businesses that offer services for weddings—bakers, florists, caterers, web designers, and others. The owners, typically conservative Christians, decline to provide services for same-sex weddings because, they argue, doing so would require them to express approval of conduct they reject on religious grounds. By declining, though, the businesses often run afoul of state anti-discrimination laws, which prohibit businesses open to the public, so-called “public accommodations,” from denying service based on customers’ status—more precisely, certain protected status categories, including, nowadays, sexual orientation.
These cases often deal with the question of how to balance commitments to free speech and free exercise with equality in the marketplace. The Supreme Court addressed this four years ago in Masterpiece Cakeshop, in which Colorado punished a Christian baker who declined to design a cake for a same-sex wedding. The Court ruled for the baker but issued a narrow decision that depended greatly on Colorado authorities’ disparaging remarks about the baker’s religious beliefs. The Court will have a hard time avoiding a broader ruling in 303 Creative—though some of the justices may try. Although it’s not clear what the ultimate reasoning will be, based on last week’s argument, it seems likely the Court will come down on the side of free speech.
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