Christian cake baker has finally defeated legal harassment from the LGBTQ+ movement after fighting in court for more than a decade.
Jack Phillips was sued in 2012 for refusing to create a cake for a same-sex couple at his Masterpiece Cakeshop in Colorado and then later sued for refusing to create a cake celebrating a transgender transition. Attorneys for the Alliance Defending Freedom have defended Phillips for 12 years.
On Tuesday the Colorado Supreme Court dismissed the second lawsuit after saying that the attorney who filed the lawsuit did not follow the proper process to do so. Phillips won the first lawsuit in 2018 after a court found that officials acted with hostility against his faith.
"Free speech is for everyone," he added. "In this case, an attorney demanded that Jack create a custom cake that would celebrate and symbolize a transition from male to female. Because that cake admittedly expresses a message, and because Jack cannot express that message for anyone, the government cannot punish Jack for declining to express it. The First Amendment protects that decision."
The ADF said that the attorney who sued Phillips had also asked him to decorate a cake with the image of Satan smoking marijuana in an attempt to "correct the errors" of Phillips' thinking.
https://www.theblaze.com/news/cake-maker-wins-lgbtq-cases
All of these cases should be dismissed after the Supreme Court decision in 303 Creative LLC v. Elenis.
The 6-3 majority decision of the Supreme Court in 303 Creative v. Elenis: "The First Amendment prohibits Colorado from forcing a website designer to create expressive designs speaking messages with which the designer disagrees. United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit reversed."
Edited: Here is the ADF Press Release https://adflegal.org/press-release/colorado-supreme-court-dismisses-lawsuit-harassing-cake-artist-jack-phillips?sourcecode=11034408_r200
They talk about 303 Creative vs. Elenis:
ADF Senior Counsel Jake Warner. "Free speech is for everyone. As the U.S. Supreme Court held in 303 Creative, the government cannot force artists to express messages they don't believe. In this case, an attorney demanded that Jack create a custom cake that would celebrate and symbolize a transition from male to female. Because that cake admittedly expresses a message, and because Jack cannot express that message for anyone, the government cannot punish Jack for declining to express it. The First Amendment protects that decision."
Just last year, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its landmark decision in 303 Creative v. Elenis, which upheld free speech for creative professionals like Phillips. ADF attorneys asked the Colorado high court to apply that ruling and similarly affirm Phillips' free-speech rights in this case. Though the Colorado Supreme Court did not decide that issue in this case, 303 Creative provides enduring free-speech protection for Phillips.
ADF has 15 Supreme Court victories and a 80% win rate.
Jack Phillips was sued in 2012 for refusing to create a cake for a same-sex couple at his Masterpiece Cakeshop in Colorado and then later sued for refusing to create a cake celebrating a transgender transition. Attorneys for the Alliance Defending Freedom have defended Phillips for 12 years.
On Tuesday the Colorado Supreme Court dismissed the second lawsuit after saying that the attorney who filed the lawsuit did not follow the proper process to do so. Phillips won the first lawsuit in 2018 after a court found that officials acted with hostility against his faith.
"Free speech is for everyone," he added. "In this case, an attorney demanded that Jack create a custom cake that would celebrate and symbolize a transition from male to female. Because that cake admittedly expresses a message, and because Jack cannot express that message for anyone, the government cannot punish Jack for declining to express it. The First Amendment protects that decision."
The ADF said that the attorney who sued Phillips had also asked him to decorate a cake with the image of Satan smoking marijuana in an attempt to "correct the errors" of Phillips' thinking.
https://www.theblaze.com/news/cake-maker-wins-lgbtq-cases
All of these cases should be dismissed after the Supreme Court decision in 303 Creative LLC v. Elenis.
The 6-3 majority decision of the Supreme Court in 303 Creative v. Elenis: "The First Amendment prohibits Colorado from forcing a website designer to create expressive designs speaking messages with which the designer disagrees. United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit reversed."
Edited: Here is the ADF Press Release https://adflegal.org/press-release/colorado-supreme-court-dismisses-lawsuit-harassing-cake-artist-jack-phillips?sourcecode=11034408_r200
They talk about 303 Creative vs. Elenis:
ADF Senior Counsel Jake Warner. "Free speech is for everyone. As the U.S. Supreme Court held in 303 Creative, the government cannot force artists to express messages they don't believe. In this case, an attorney demanded that Jack create a custom cake that would celebrate and symbolize a transition from male to female. Because that cake admittedly expresses a message, and because Jack cannot express that message for anyone, the government cannot punish Jack for declining to express it. The First Amendment protects that decision."
Just last year, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its landmark decision in 303 Creative v. Elenis, which upheld free speech for creative professionals like Phillips. ADF attorneys asked the Colorado high court to apply that ruling and similarly affirm Phillips' free-speech rights in this case. Though the Colorado Supreme Court did not decide that issue in this case, 303 Creative provides enduring free-speech protection for Phillips.
ADF has 15 Supreme Court victories and a 80% win rate.
