From the Washington Post: A restaurant wanting a ‘grown and sexy’ vibe bans diners under 30

This is age discrimination. Is it legal? Can it be successfully challenged? How? 

- Click here for the article. 

When Marvin Pate and his wife opened Bliss, their Caribbean restaurant outside St. Louis, they were aiming for an upscale, luxe vibe. They put jollof rice and tropical cocktails on the menu, offered hookahs for patrons to enjoy — and they banned diners under the age of 30.

Since opening its doors in May, the restaurant has operated with an unusual age restriction, allowing in only women at least 30 and men at least 35, rules that the owners have been defending as necessary to maintain the kind of “grown and sexy” atmosphere they’re aiming for. “This policy is in place to ensure a mature, sophisticated, and safe dining environment for everyone,” the restaurant said in a Facebook post.

The age restriction has polarized customers, but Pate and his team have defended them as needed to keep out a rowdy younger crowd. “It’s just something for the older people to come do and have a happy hour, come get some good food and not have to worry about some of the young folks who bring some of that drama,” assistant manager Erica Rhodes told local news outlet KSDK News.
Happy hours are billed as a civilized experience: “This is strictly for the grown and sexy, so we’re keeping it classy — ladies 30 and up, fellas 35 and up,” Bliss posted on Facebook.

. . . Johnson seconded that: “We are standing on this age restriction. It’s a brand and vibe we are trying to protect,” he said.

Legally, restaurants have the right to impose age limits because age is not a protected class in that context. Controversies around age restrictions usually have cropped up when restaurants ban children. Last year, Nettie’s House of Spaghetti in New Jersey, drew both rebuke and praise when it banned kids under 10, citing the noise and “crazy messes” they brought.

It’s far less common for such rules to target adults. But there are exceptions: In San Antonio, Horizons & More bills itself as a 30-and-up destination “for the grown & mature.” And in New York, cocktail bar The Auction House imposes a 25-and-up policy on Fridays and Saturdays.

Last year, two TikTokers shared a tale of being turned away from Melody’s Bar & Grill in Los Angeles because they weren’t old enough for the establishment’s 30-plus night. One response to the video seemed to come from someone who appreciated the idea of a 20-something-free zone: “I know it hurts right now, but when you are 30 you’ll understand.”

For more: 

- Protected Class. 

- Major Life Activity.

- Youth Age Discrimination.

- National Youth Rights Association.

Equal Treatment v Religious Freedom

An ongoing situation in Texas has put these in conflict. 

There have been many such cases nationally.

The case is DIANNE HENSLEY v. STATE COMMISSION ON JUDICIAL CONDUCT; ET AL.

- Click here for the case documents.
- Click here for video of the hearing before the Texas Supreme Court.

For media coverage: 

- Texas judge’s refusal to marry gay couples goes before state supreme court.

Texas Supreme Court justices Wednesday questioned whether a Waco justice of the peace should remain under threat of a judicial oversight body’s sanctions if she continues refusing to marry gay couples.

The State Commission on Judicial Conduct gave Judge Dianne Hensley a public warning in 2019 for performing opposite-sex weddings for couples, but declining to perform same-sex wedding ceremonies on religious grounds — a move that casted doubt on her capacity to act impartially, according to the notice. Her refusal occurred in the wake of a landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling that required all states to license same-sex marriages.

Hensley serves as a justice of the peace in McLennan County, an elected official whose role includes hearing traffic and misdemeanor cases; presiding over landlord and tenant disputes; and, among other duties, can include conducting weddings.

Following the 2019 warning, Hensley filed a lawsuit alleging that the judicial commission violated her rights under the Texas Religious Freedom Restoration Act. The 1999 act was designed to ensure the government cannot “substantially burden” free exercise of religious beliefs.

The state’s highest civil court heard oral arguments Wednesday after an appeals court affirmed a lower court’s decision to toss her legal challenge last year on grounds that the commission acted within its powers and is protected from lawsuits due to sovereign immunity.

The case is believed to be among several that will attempt to expand the reach of a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that let a Colorado web designer refuse same-sex couples. However, most of Wednesday’s proceedings revolved around what Hensley had already done and what could happen to her in the future.

Waco judge sues state agency after receiving public warning for refusing to officiate same-sex marriages.

A Waco judge who received a public warning last month for refusing to officiate same-sex marriages filed a lawsuit against the state agency that issued the warning, claiming the governmental body violated state law by punishing her for actions taken in accordance with her faith.

The First Liberty Institute, a high-profile Plano-based religious liberty law firm closely aligned with the Texas Attorney General’s Office, will represent the judge, Dianne Hensley, in the lawsuit filed Tuesday in McLennan County District Court.

Shortly after the U.S. Supreme Court asserted the constitutional right for same-sex couples to marry in the landmark 2015 Obergefell decision, Hensley refused to officiate any weddings. But in August 2016, she decided to resume officiating weddings between men and women, and said she would “politely refer” same-sex couples who sought her services to others in the area.

“For providing a solution to meet a need in my community while remaining faithful to my religious beliefs, I received a ‘Public Warning.’ No one should be punished for that,” Hensley said in a statement.

Hensley, who claims the state violated the Texas Religious Freedom Restoration Act, is seeking a declaratory judgment from the court decreeing that any justice of the peace may refuse to officiate a same-sex wedding “if the commands of their religious faith forbid them to participate in same-sex marriage ceremonies.”

The public warning issued by the State Commission on Judicial Conduct Nov. 12 did not carry a fine. But Hensley claims the investigation and warning “substantially burdened the free exercise of her religion, with no compelling justification.” She seeks damages of $10,000.

Her attorney on the case, Jonathan Mitchell, is a former solicitor general of Texas. 

For more: 

- State Religious Freedom Restoration Acts.
- Click here for the relevant law in Texas.
- TLO: SB 138 - 76(R).