How to Protect Your Freedom of Religion

Getting Help

Hire a lawyer. Religious freedom in the United States is a constitutional right and can therefore be protected in the court system. Your freedom of religion can be protected outside of the court system as well. In either situation, a qualified civil rights lawyer will greatly increase your chances of successfully protecting your rights when they have been threatened and/or diminished. If you are a part of an organized religion (e.g., Christianity, Judaism, Islam), talk to your religious leaders about lawyers they may know. In addition, talk to other members of your faith about possible recommendations. If you do not get any qualified recommendations, contact your state bar association's lawyer referral service. Using this service, you will be asked a series of questions about your legal problem and you will be put in contact with qualified lawyers in your area. When you meet with candidates, be sure you ask about their past successes and whether they feel comfortable with the issues you are discussing. For example, if you are planning on going to court, find a lawyer comfortable going to trial. However, if you plan on filing administrative complaints, find a lawyer who practices administrative law. Ask about fees and make sure you feel comfortable paying what is charged. While lawyers can be expensive, you usually get what you pay for.

Talk to civil rights organizations. In addition to hiring a lawyer, or as a way to find one, you should contact civil rights organizations with reputable track records of protecting religious freedoms. Civil rights organizations will often have staff lawyers who will take your case on a pro bono basis (for free) and they will vigorously fight for your rights. In addition, civil rights organizations often have very charismatic leaders who can bring your fight into the public light by talking to the media. For example, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) actively seeks clients who have had their individual rights trampled. Contact the ACLU if you have questions about your religious rights.

Go to the media. Pleading your case in front of the court of public opinion can be an effective way to gather support and help. While you need to be careful not to make any defamatory statements in the media because you might open yourself up to litigation, a tactful media strategy can be the difference between success and failure. If you have hired the ACLU, they will likely help you put together a media tour. In fact, the ACLU has their own media department. When you talk with the media, you should explain your complaint in clear and concise language. You should also make a plea for help from others who have experienced the same problems. When you do this, you will likely get phone calls, emails, and other correspondence from people willing to help. Help may come in the form of donations to help you pay for legal costs, food and lodging if you have to travel, or legal help if you are not already receiving any. In addition, the more people that share your concern, the more traction your story will get.

Defending Your Rights Outside of Court

Become an activist. Whether your religious rights have been endangered or not, if you believe in the freedom of religion you can protect those rights by becoming an activist. An activist is someone who believes in a social cause and campaigns for that cause. In order to effectively campaign for religious freedom, you will have to understand the laws you are trying to effect. At its most basic level, religious freedoms are protected by the U.S. Constitution's First Amendment. The First Amendment has two religious clauses, and countless federal and state laws protect those religious freedoms. The Establishment Clause of the First Amendment prohibits the government from encouraging or promoting religion. Under the Establishment Clause, your religious rights may be diminished if government promoted a religion that is not yours. The Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment gives you the right to worship or not however you choose. Here, your rights may be infringed if you are unable to worship due to a government law or policy. The laws passed by federal, state, and local governments must all adhere to these constitutional principals. If they do not, they will likely be found unconstitutional by a court.

Write to your representatives. Another way to fight for religious freedom is to write letters to your state and federal representatives and make your beliefs known. These letters can be particularly persuasive considering you are the individual voting these people into office. If they do not listen to your concerns, they may not win reelection. You can write your legislators as well as your executives (i.e., the President and governor). When you write a letter to your representatives, state your purpose up front and be very clear about what you want your representative to do. For example, if there is a bill being debated in the senate that you believe diminishes your religious freedoms, you might write a letter to your senator letting them know you want them to oppose the bill.

File government complaints. Prior to filing a lawsuit, you may choose (or be required) to file a complaint with a state or federal agency. Agencies are departments tasked with making rules and executing the laws of a state or the federal government. By filing an agency complaint, you may get the relief you seek without ever going to court. However, in some circumstances, you are required to file an agency complaint before you can file a lawsuit. For example the Department of Justice (DOJ) gives you an opportunity to file a complaint if you feel your civil rights have been violated. To file a complaint, visit the DOJ website to determine what information you need to include and where your complaint needs to be sent. This information will vary depending on the type of complaint you choose to file. You are required to file a complaint, for example, if you are alleging employment discrimination based on your religious beliefs (e.g., being fired for wearing a hijab). In the employment discrimination realm, you must file a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). The EEOC will analyze your complaint and if they find sufficient evidence of discrimination, they will issue you a "right to sue" letter. Only when you have this letter will you be able to file a lawsuit.

Create a ballot initiative. One way to ensure your religious freedoms are protected is to offer up a ballot initiative, if your state allows them. In California, for example, you can offer up a ballot initiative in order to propose and enact a law or an amendment to the California Constitution. To get a ballot initiative on the ballot next election, you will have to draft the legal language of your initiative and present it to the Secretary of State. Your initiative must also be certified by your local elected officials. Once this happens, you will need to go out and get a certain number of qualified voter signatures. When you meet these requirements, your initiative will be placed on the state ballot to be voted on in the next election. If your initiative passes, it will become law.

Protect everybody's religious freedoms. If you only protect your own religious freedoms while other people's freedoms are being trampled, you will be setting a precedent to allow religious freedoms in general to be violated. If this happens, your religious freedoms could be violated in the future based on the precedent you set. For example, if you are Jewish, you should also be vocal about Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, and other religions. In the United States, freedom of religion means you are free to practice whatever religion you like. Look for interfaith groups that work across religious lines to protect the broad freedom of religion. Get involved and do not focus on just one religion.

Filing a Lawsuit

Decide where to sue. When you decide to sue someone for diminishing your religious freedoms, the first important decision you will have to make is whether you will file your lawsuit in state or federal court. Depending on the circumstances, you may be able to choose or you may be required to file in one or the other. State courts are usually courts of general jurisdiction and can hear any case brought in front of them unless they are specifically barred from doing so. On the other hand, if you want to file your lawsuit in federal court you will have to meet one of two jurisdictional tests. First, you can file in federal court if you are suing under a federal law, which includes the U.S. Constitution (i.e., federal question jurisdiction). For example, if you are suing an employer for employment discrimination, you might decide to sue under the federal law prohibiting those actions. Second, you can file in federal court if you have diversity of citizenship. Here, you and the defendant must be citizens of different states and the amount in controversy must exceed $75,000. If you can choose between the two, you should most likely choose to file in federal court. If you are suing based on a constitutional claim, or a federal law claim, the federal courts are much better equipped to handle your case.

Draft a complaint. A lawsuit is started when a complaint is filed with the court. A complaint is a legal document that tells the judge and the defendant why you are suing someone, how the defendant violated the law, how you were injured, and what you want the court to do about it. Your complaint will include at least the following: The case caption, which includes the court where you are filing your complaint and the parties to the suit. The jurisdictional basis, which tells the court why they can hear the case. The nature of your suit and the cause of action (i.e., what law you are filing under and how you have been harmed). Whether you want a jury. Your request for relief, which is the dollar amount you are asking the defendant for.

Fill out a summons form. The summons is a document that demands that the defendant respond to your lawsuit. The summons is an already completed form and all you have to do is include the defendant's name, address, and the time limit in which they have to respond. The time frame a defendant must follow is laid out in state or federal rules of civil procedure. In most cases it is usually around 30 days.

File your lawsuit. When you have completed your complaint and summons, you will take those forms to the courthouse and file them with the clerk of courts. In federal court, you can either file your case in-person or by email. If you can, file in-person. It will allow you to discuss your paperwork with the clerk of courts. Once the clerk of courts verifies your paperwork, he or she will ask you to pay a $400 filing fee (this fee may be more or less in state court). If you can afford the fee and pay it when you file, your lawsuit will be stamped as "filed" and you will be assigned a judge and case number. Also, you will receive a summons with the court's stamp on it, which you will need when you serve the defendant. If you cannot afford the fee, you must file a motion to proceed in forma pauperis, which asks the court to waive the fee. A judge will have to rule on this motion before your fee will be waived. If the motion is approved, your lawsuit will be stamped as "filed", you will be assigned a case number and judge, and you will receive an official summons from the court.

Serve the other party. You are required to notify the other party that they have been sued, and you do that by serving them with a copy of the complaint and summons. Under federal law, you have 120 days from when you file to serve the defendant. If you are in state court, you may have more or less time. Every defendant in your suit must be individually served. To serve the defendant, you will have someone personally hand the documents to the defendant or have them send the documents by certified mail. If you are in state court, you can hire the sheriff's office to conduct service. If you are in federal court, you can get the U.S. Marshal's Service to conduct service if the court approves it.

File the return of service forms. Once the defendant has been served, the person who served them will complete a return of service form. This form asks the server to verify that service was indeed completed. When this form is completed, it will be returned to you. You will have to file the completed form with the clerk of courts so the court knows service has been completed.

Await an answer. If the defendant responds to your lawsuit, it will usually be in the form of an answer. An answer responds to each of your allegations by either admitting or denying them. In addition, the defendant may make cross-claims against you. If cross-claims are made against you, you will have to respond as if you were the defendant. If a defendant fails to respond to your lawsuit, the court may enter a default judgment in your favor. When this happens, you will be awarded the relief you sought in your complaint.

Participating in Pretrial Actions

Take part in discovery. The first stage of litigation is discovery, which is when you and the defendant exchange information for the purpose of preparing for trial. During discovery you will learn the identity of witnesses and gather relevant documents. If the defendant does not comply with your discovery requests, you can file motions with the court to ask it to require the defendant to comply. In general, the following tools can be used during discovery in order to gather information: Depositions, which are in-person interviews with the defendant or other witnesses. These interviews are conducted under oath and answers given can be used in court. Interrogatories, which are written questions that a defendant or other witness is required to answer. The answers are written under oath and can be used in court. Document requests, which are written requests for documents relevant to your case. Documents can include emails, internal memos, photographs, and graphs. Requests for admissions, which ask the defendant to admit the truth of facts or the genuineness of documents.

Defend against a motion for summary judgment. As soon as discovery concludes, most defendants will file a motion for summary judgment, which asks the court to decide the litigation before it gets to trial. In order to be successful, the defendant will have to prove there are no genuine issues of material fact and that they are entitled to judgment as a matter of law. The court will make every assumption in your favor at this point. You can defend against this motion by submitting your own evidence and affidavits that show the court there are facts in dispute that need to be decided at trial. If you succeed in defending against this motion, the litigation will continue.

Attempt to settle. At this point in the litigation, right before trial begins, you may want to attempt to settle your case in order to avoid the additional cost and time commitment of going to trial. When you attempt to settle, you and the defendant will get together and discuss what a reasonable award would be given the fact you are both winning if the case doesn't go to trial. The amount you settle for and the time you take attempting to come to an agreement will be based on how strong you think your case is. The stronger your case, the less likely it is you will settle for less than what you would get at trial. In addition to informal negotiations, you and the defendant might also take part in: Mediation, which takes place when a neutral third party sits down with you and the defendant to discuss common ground and areas of agreement. The third party will not take sides and will not make any opinions about the case. Arbitration, which takes place when a third party hears evidence from both parties and makes conclusions based on the evidence they hear. The third party will take sides here and will give you their opinion about the case.

Attend final pretrial hearings. During your final pretrial hearings before trial begins, you and the defendant will meet with the judge to discuss how the trial is likely to proceed. The trial will be limited to the issues and claims brought up during this pretrial hearing.

Going to Trial

Choose a jury. If your case goes to trial, you will have the opportunity to have it heard before a judge or before a jury. This decision must be made in your complaint. If you chose to waive your right to a jury, your case will be held in front of a judge who will make every substantive decision about your case. If you chose to have your case heard by a jury, you will take part in "voire dire", which is the process for choosing a jury. During voire dire you will have the opportunity to question potential jurors about their biases and ability to be impartial. If you think a juror is biased, you can ask to have them dismissed. When a jury is chosen, they will be sworn in and the trial will begin.

Make an opening statement. Your opening statement should outline the case you will make for the jury, or for the judge, and will provide a road map explaining your case. The opening statement is not a time to present evidence and you should not complicate things at this time. Your opening statement should be short and to the point. Once you give your opening statement, the defendant will have an opportunity to do the same. However, the defendant can also choose to hold off and make a statement right before they present their case.

Present your case. When opening statements are complete, you will present you case by calling witnesses to the stand and introducing evidence through them. You will ask each witness questions and present evidence in accordance with the local rules of evidence. When you are done questioning each witness, the defendant will have an opportunity to cross-examine them and try to poke holes in their testimony.

Cross-examine witnesses. Once your case has been presented and you have rested, the defense will have their opportunity to present their case. After the defendant questions each of their witnesses, you will have an opportunity to cross-examine them in order to call into question their testimony. You will do this by showing the witness was either untruthful or unreliable. For example, if a defense witness stated one thing during direct examination, but the complete opposite during a deposition, you will want to bring this to light during cross examination.

Make your closing argument. When you and the defendant have rested, you will have an opportunity to make a closing argument to the jury or judge. Your closing argument is an opportunity to go over the key points of your case, persuade the judge or jury you deserve to win, and to make any final points you need to make. Once you make your closing statement, the defendant will have an opportunity to make one as well.

Await a verdict. When the trial is over, the jury or judge will deliberate about what they heard before making a final decision. After deliberations, the decision maker will make their decision and issue a verdict. The verdict is the final decision of the trial. If you win, judgment will be entered in your favor and damages will be awarded. If you lose, judgment will be entered in the defendant's favor and you will not be able to collect any money.