By Joey Aron, Esq. | January 07, 2021
The United States Supreme Court, in two cases it ruled on together, Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn v. Cuomo and Agudath Israel of America v. Cuomo, last month issued an order temporarily barring Governor Cuomo from enforcing strict restrictions on the number of people allowed at houses of worship. In a 5-4 decision, the court determined that Cuomo’s restrictions on the number of worshipers treated houses of worship much more harshly than comparable secular facilities. The court therefore concluded that the plaintiffs would likely prevail in their lawsuits challenging the restrictions under the free exercise of religion clause of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.