April 2018 Bar Bulletin
By Gregg Bertram
Later this year, the U.S. Supreme Court is expected to rule on a landmark case, Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission, that has pitted the First Amendment against Colorado’s anti-discrimination laws, in a case reminiscent of the Arlene’s Flowers case here in Washington.
One of the most controversial cases to come before the Supreme Court in recent years began when a baker in Colorado refused to make a wedding cake for a soon-to-be-married gay couple. The baker, Jack Phillips, owner of the Denver-area Masterpiece Cakeshop, claims that his First Amendment rights of free speech and religion excluded him from having to adhere...