Federal Appeals Court Sends NJ Civil Union Case Back to Lower Court

A federal appeals court has ruled that a lower court should address whether a New Jersey religious organization can bar gay couples from civil-union ceremonies on its properties except for a popular pavilion. The three-judge panel of the Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit agreed that U.S. District Court should not consider the use of the Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association's boardwalk pavilion, which is the heart of a discrimination case pending before a state administrative law judge. The appeals court said Wednesday that the federal judge should consider whether the association, which owns all the land in the Monmouth County village, can bar civil-union ceremonies on its property outside the pavilion. The court did not reinstate the association's lawsuit as it pertains to the pavilion, which is not now used for weddings or civil unions. Full Story from the Philadelphia Enquirer

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