Vlaming v. West Point School Board
Virginia Supreme Court
895 S.E.2d 705 (2023)
- Written by Angela Patrick, JD
Facts
Peter Vlaming (plaintiff) taught French at a public high school in Virginia. One of Vlaming’s students was a transgender male whose preferred name was Doe. Vlaming, claiming that it would violate his religious beliefs to refer to the student using masculine pronouns, refused to refer to the student using any pronouns. Instead, Vlaming always referred to the student using the name Doe. Vlaming was terminated. Vlaming sued the school board (defendant), alleging that he had been terminated because he refused to refer to the student using masculine pronouns and that this termination violated his right to freely exercise his religious beliefs under both the Virginia Constitution and the Virginia Religious Freedom Restoration Act. The trial court dismissed the complaint for failing to state a legally viable claim. Vlaming appealed to the Virginia Supreme Court.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Kelsey, J.)
Concurrence (Mann, J.)
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