Fulton v. City Of Philadelphia

• Decision Date: 22 April 2019
• Docket Number: No. 18-2574,18-2574
• Citation: 922 F.3d 140
• Parties: Sharonell FULTON; Cecelia Paul; Toni Lynn Simms-Busch; Catholic Social Services, Appellants v. CITY OF PHILADELPHIA; Department of Human Services for the City of Philadelphia; Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations Support Center for Child Advocates; Philadelphia Family Pride (Intervenors in D.C.)
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — Third Circuit

922 F.3d 140

Sharonell FULTON; Cecelia Paul; Toni Lynn Simms-Busch; Catholic Social Services, Appellants

v.CITY OF PHILADELPHIA; Department of Human Services for the City of Philadelphia; Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations Support Center for Child Advocates; Philadelphia Family Pride (Intervenors in D.C.)

No. 18-2574

United States Court of Appeals, Third Circuit.

Argued November 6, 2018

Opinion filed: April 22, 2019

Stephanie H. Barclay, Nicholas R. Reaves, Mark L. Rienzi, Lori H. Windham (Argued), Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, 1200 New Hampshire Avenue, N.W., Suite 700, Washington, DC 20036, Nicholas M. Centrella, Conrad O’Brien, 1500 Market Street, West Towers, Suite 3900, Philadelphia, PA 19102, Counsel for Appellants.

Marcel S. Pratt, City Solicitor, Diana Cortes, Chair, Litigation Group, Jane Lovitch Istvan (Argued), Chief Deputy Solicitor, Appeals, Eleanor N. Ewing, Chief Deputy City Solicitor, Affirmative & General Litigation, Elise M. Bruhl, Benjamin H. Field, Schaundra Oliver, Michael W. Pfautz, City of Philadelphia, Law Department 17th Floor, 1515 Arch Street, Philadelphia, PA 19102, Counsel for Appellees.

David J. Hacker, Office of Attorney General of Texas, Office of Special Litigation, P.O. Box 12548, Austin, TX 78711, Counsel for Amicus Appellants State of Missouri, State of Nebraska, State of Oklahoma, State of Alabama, State of Arkansas, State of Louisiana, State of Texas, Commonwealth of Kentucky.

John J. Bursch, Bursch Law, 9339 Cherry Valley Southeast, Suite 78, Caledonia, MI 49316, David A. Cortman, Rory T. Gray, John M. Sharp, Kristen K. Waggoner, Alliance Defending Freedom, 1000 Hurricane Shoals Road, N.E., Building D, Suite 1100, Lawrenceville, GA 30043, Counsel for Amicus Appellants Alliance Defending Freedom, Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention, Family Research Council, Focus on the Family.

William Haun, Shearman & Sterling, 401 9th Street, N.W., Suite 800, Washington, DC 20004, Counsel for Amicus Appellant Jewish Coalition for Religious Liberty.

Miles Coleman, Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough, 104 South Main Street, Suite 900, Greenville, SC 29601, Counsel for Amicus Appellants Mike Enzi, Roy Blunt, John Boozman, Tom Cotton, Ted Cruz, Steve Daines, Tim Scott, James M. Inhofe, James Lankford, James E. Risch, Mike Kelly, Robert Aderholt, Jim Banks, Lou Barletta, Diane Black, Kevin Brady, Kevin Cramer, Jeff Duncan, Neal P. Dunn, Matt Gaetz, Glenn Grothman, Andy Harris, Jody B. Hice, Randy Hultgren, Walter B. Jones, Steve King, Doug Lamborn, Billy Long, Barry Loudermilk, Tom Marino, Mark Meadows, Ralph Norman, Pete Olson, John Ratcliffe, Dana Rohrabacher, Todd Rokita, Keith Rothfus, Steve Russell, Steve Scalise, Christopher Smith, Randy K. Weber, Roger Williams.

Andres M. Picciotti-Bayer, Catholic Association Foundation, 3220 N Street, N.W., Suite 126, Washington, DC 20007, Counsel for Amicus Appellants Former Foster Children & Foster Parents; Catholic Association Foundation.

Leslie Cooper (Argued), James D. Esseks, American Civil Liberties Union, 125 Broad Street, 18th Floor, New York, NY 10004, Fred T. Magaziner, Catherine V. Wigglesworth, Dechert, 2929 Arch Street, Cira Center 18th Floor, Philadelphia, PA 19104, Mary Catherine Roper, Molly M. Tack-Hooper, American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania, P.O. Box 60173, Philadelphia, PA 19106, Counsel for Intervenor-Appellees Philadelphia Family Pride, Support Center for Child Advocates.

Alexander J. Luchenitser, Richard B. Katskee, Americans United for Separation of Church & State, 1310 L Street, NW, Suite 200, Washington, DC 20005, Counsel for Amicus Appellee Americans United for Separation of Church & State

Steven M. Freeman, David L. Barkey, Melissa Garlick, Amy E. Feinman, Anti-Defamation League, 605 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10158, M. Duncan Grant, Alexander L. Harris, Pepper Hamilton, 3000 Two Logan Square, 18^th and Arch Streets, Philadelphia, PA 19103, Counsel for Amicus Appellees Anti-Defamation League of Philadelphia, Asian Pacific American Advocates, Bend the Arc a Jewish Partnership for Justice, Hindu American Foundation, Interfaith Alliance Foundation, Japanese American Citizens League, Jewish Social Policy Action Network, Jewish Women International, Keshet, Muslim Advocates, National Council of Jewish Women, People for the American Way Foundation, Sikh Coalition, South Asian Americans Leading Together, Rabbinic Call for Human Rights.

Julie Wilensky, Shannon P. Minter, Catherine Sakimura, National Center for Lesbian Rights, 870 Market Street, Suite 370, San Francisco, CA 94102, Counsel for Amicus Appellees National Center for Lesbian Rights, Civil Rights Education and Enforcement Center, Disability Rights Advocates, Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund Inc., Equal Justice Society, GLBTQ Legal Advocates and Defenders, Legal Aid at Work, Impact Fund, National Association of the Deaf, National Federation of the Blind, Transgender Law Center.

Cathren I. Cohen, Marshall Currey Cook, Karen Loewy, Lambda Legal, 120 Wall Street, 19th Floor, New York, NY 10005, Counsel for Amicus Appellees Fosterclub, Garden State Equality, Gender and Sexuality Development Clinic of Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Human Rights Campaign, Lambda Legal Defense & Education Fund Inc., Mazzoni Center, National LGBTQ Task Force, Pennsylvania Youth Congress Foundation, The Trevor Project, True Colors Fund.

Maura Healey, Attorney General of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Elizabeth N. Dewar, State Solicitor, Abigail B. Taylor, Angela R. Brooks, Genevieve C. Nadeau, Office of Attorney General of Massachusetts, One Ashburton Place, McCormack Building 20th Floor, Boston, MA 02108, Counsel for Amicus Appellees State of California, State of Connecticut, State of Delaware, District of Columbia, State of Hawaii, State of Illinois, State of Iowa, State of Maine, State of Maryland, State of Minnesota, State of New Jersey, State of New York, State of Oregon, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, State of Rhode Island, State of Vermont, State of Washington, Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

Jeffrey S. Trachtman, Norman C. Simon, Tobias B. Jacoby, Jason M. Moff, Elise Funke, Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel, 1177 Avenue of the Americans, New York, NY 10036, Counsel for Amicus Appellees Rev. Lavonne Althouse, Dr. Kharma Amos, Rev. Robert Burke, Dr. Randy Bush, Central Atlantic Conference of United Church of Christ, Central Atlantic Conference of American Rabbis, Covenant Network of Presbyterians, Dr. Beverly Dale, Dr. Janet Edwards, Rev. Jean Erb, Evangelical Lutheran Church in American, Rev. Margaret Diane Fisher, Friends for Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender and Queer Concerns; Rev. Phillip Geliebter, Rev. Michael Giansiracusa, Rev. Hilary Greer, Rev. Sara Hale, Erin Hirsh, Melford Holldand, Rev. Rebecca Irwin-Diehl, Dr. Elizabeth Kaeton, Rev. Catherin Kerr, Mary Kisner, Dr. Vincent Kolb, Lutherans for Full Participation; Men of Reform Judaism, Rev. Jeffrey Miller, More Light Presbyterians, Muslims for Progressive Values, Rev. Bill Neely, Linda Noonan, Penn Central Conference of United Church of Christ, Penn Northeast Conference of the United Church of Christ, Penn West Conference of United Church of Chris, Pennsylvania Southeast Conference of United Church of Christ, David Pickett, Rev. William Podobinski, Reconciling Works, Reconstructionist Rabbinical Association, Religious Institute, Serena Rice, Rev. Michael Ruk, Michele Schenk, Rev. Matthew Simpson, Stated Clerk of the General Assembly of Presbyterian Church, Megan Sutker, Stephanie Anne Thompson, Union for Reform Judaism, Unitarian Universalist Association, Rev. Naomi Washington-Leapheart, Amy Welin, Dr. Traci West, Women of Reform Judaism, Rev. Joan Wylie.

Justin Goodyear, Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr, 7 World Trade Center, 250 Greewich Street, New York, NY 10007, Elizabeth Mitchell, Emily L. Stark, Lauren J. Schreur, Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr, 1875 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington, DC 20006, Counsel for Amicus Appellees Child Welfare League, National Association of Social Workers, North American Council of Adoptable Children, Voice for Adoption.

Joshua A. Matz, Kaplan Hecker & Fink, 350 Fifth Avenue, Suite 7110, New York, NY 10118, Counsel for Amicus Appellees, Caroline Mala Corbin, Frederick Gedicks, Richard C. Shragger, Micah Schwartzman, Elizabeth Sepper, Nelson Tebbe

Kendyl T. Hanks, Greenberg Traurig, 300 West 6^th Street, Suite 2050, Austin, TX 78701, Counsel for Amicus Appellees, Children’s Rights, Barton Child Law & Policy Center, Emory Law School, Center for Children & Youth Justice, Center for Children’s Advocacy, Center for the Study of Social Policy, Center on Children and Families, Children and Family Justice Center, Children’s Action Alliance, Children’s Advocacy Institute, Children’s Defense Fund-New York, Children’s Law Center of California, Children’s Law Center of Kentucky, Children’s Law Center of Minnesota, Coalition for Juvenile Justice, Columbia Legal Services; First Star, Inc., Florida’s Children First, Inc., Harvard Law School Child Advocacy Program, Juvenile Law Center, Lawyers For Children, Legal Counsel for Youth and Children, Legal Services for Children, Professor Bruce A. Boyer, Professor Michael J. Dale, National Center for Youth Law, Nebraska Appleseed, New Mexico Child Advocacy Network, Partners for Our Children, Pegasus Legal Services for Children, Rutgers School of Law Children’s Justice Clinic, University of Miami Children & Youth Law Clinic, Youth Law Center.

Philip E. Karmel, Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner, 1290 Avenue of the Americans, New York, NY 10104, Counsel for Amicus Appellees Family Equality Council, COLAGE.

Before: AMBRO, SCIRICA, and RENDELL, Circuit Judges

OPINION OF THE COURT

AMBRO, Circuit JudgeA reporter from the Philadelphia Inquirer informed the City of Philadelphia’s Department of Human Services in March 2018 that two of its agencies would not work with same-sex couples as foster parents. Human...