Holland & Hart attorney Jessica Smith, leader of the firm’s Religious Institutions and First Amendment practice group, was quoted in Law Week Colorado’s Nov. 16 article entitled, “10th Circuit Hears Case on First Amendment and LGBT Discrimination.” The article discusses the procedural hurdles facing a web design company whose female owner claims the Colorado Anti-Discrimination Act violates her First Amendment rights by forcing the company to create websites celebrating same-sex marriages, against her Christian beliefs.
Because the business has not denied services to any customer based on sexual orientation, and no complaint of discrimination has been filed, the plaintiff must first show it faces a sufficiently imminent threat of enforcement. “The standing hurdle is a big one, here,” Jessica Smith said. “If this [10th Circuit] panel reaches the merits of the First Amendment questions [in 303 Creative], I would very much expect it to go en banc,” added Smith. “And if the company is found to lack standing,” she said, “there’s a possibility the 10th Circuit judges could signal in their opinion how the case or plaintiff could have been better.”
Click here to read the Law Week Colorado Nov. 16 article online: “10th Circuit Hears Case on First Amendment and LGBT Discrimination."