Grumet v. Pataki

The Becket Fund wrote a brief amicus curiae supporting the ability of the Satmar Hasidim to form their own school district in the village of Kiryas Joel. Although the new New York law which permits such a district to be created (this is its third attempt) was enacted in response to previous court decisions finding earlier plans unconstitutional, we argued that such interaction between the legislature and judiciary is valid, and indeed even necessary. Although the judiciary has the power to check against unconstitutional acts of legislatures, as we argued in our brief:

These "checks and balances of government . . . were meant to be checks of cooperation, and not of antagonism or mastery." Or as the Supreme Court observed in Buckley v. Valeo, 424 U.S. 1, 121 (1976): "The men who met in Philadelphia in the summer of 1787 were practical statesmen, experienced in politics, who viewed the principle of separation of powers as a vital check against tyranny. But they likewise saw that a hermetic sealing off of the three branches of Government would preclude the establishment of a Nation capable of governing itself effectively." Our system of government relies upon each of the three branches working toward the common goal of ordering our lives together as a people, each branch individually in its assigned functions, but also in a give-and-take with the other two branches in a common project of achieving just and effective governance.

The New York Court of Appeals again struck down this law--read Grumet v. Pataki, No. 99-0073 (May 11, 1999)--holding that it has the impermissible effect of advancing one religious sect.

The defendants have filed a Petition for Writ of Certiorari to the United States Supreme Court. On June 29, 1999, we filed an amicus brief supporting their position on behalf of ourselves, the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights, and the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America.

UPDATE: The Supreme Court denied the Petition on October 12, 1999.