O'Brien v. U.S. Department of Health & Human Services

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit
O'Brien v. U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, 766 F.3d 862 (8th Cir. 2014)
2014 U.S. App. LEXIS 17297; 2014 WL 4401187

O'Brien v. U.S. Department of Health & Human Services

Opinion of the Court

PER CURIAM.

In light of Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc., 573 U.S.-,-, 134 S.Ct. 2751, 2785, 189 L.Ed.2d 675 (2014), the appellants’ complaint submits a facially plausible claim for relief under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA), 42 U.S.C. § 2000bb-l(a) to (e). See. Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 678, 129 S.Ct. 1937, 173 L.Ed.2d 868 (2009). It thus appears unnecessary to address the appellants’ remaining claims, see Hobby Lobby, 573 U.S. at-, 134 S.Ct. at 2785, and the doctrine of constitutional avoidance particularly counsels us not to give unnecessary answers to constitutional questions, see, e.g., Ashwander v. TVA, 297 U.S. 288, 345-48, 56 S.Ct. 466, 80 L.Ed. 688 (1936) (Brandéis, J., concurring).

We reverse the Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6) dismissal of the appellants’ RFRA claim, vacate the dismissal of the appellants’ remaining claims without expressing any view on the merits, and remand for further proceedings consistent with Hobby Lobby.

Reference

Full Case Name
Frank R. O'BRIEN, Jr. O'Brien Industrial Holdings, LLC v. U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES Sylvia Mathews Burwell, in her official capacity as the Secretary of the United States Department of Health and Human Services United States Department of the Treasury Jacob J. Lew, in his official capacity as the Secretary of the United States Department of the Treasury United States Department of Labor Thomas E. Perez, in his official capacity as Secretary of the United States Department of Labor
Cited By
2 cases
Status
Published