Constitutional Law and Law and Religion Joint Program

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Thirty years ago, in Employment Division v. Smith (1990), the Supreme Court held that the Free Exercise Clause generally does not entitle religious believers or institutions to exemptions from neutral and generally applicable laws. Though trimmed back somewhat by subsequent judicial decisions and legislation, Smith remains the central decision in free exercise jurisprudence, yet the Supreme Court has agreed to revisit Smith this term. Since Smith, there have been deep changes in American society and on the Court. With this as background, the panel offers a wide-ranging discussion of the future of the Free Exercise Clause.