We just won a major victory!
On April 15, 2025, the U.S. District Court for North Dakota granted all current and future members of the Catholic Benefits Association permanent protection from EEOC mandates that would require Catholic employers and others to accommodate abortion, IVF, or surrogacy.
The Court order also prevents the EEOC from enforcing mandates that would require access to single-sex spaces for those of the opposite sex and would impose a speech code that includes preferred pronouns.
Doug Wilson, CEO of CBA, sees this ruling as an strong affirmation of our collective power as an association and the strength of CBA’s legal team at First and Fourteenth. “This victory vindicates the rights of our over 9,000 members to pursue their ministries in service to others, according to our faith,” Wilson commented.
He also noted that the Court’s ruling serves the common good. “Guided by their Catholic faith, our members contribute hundreds of thousands of hours in service to society every year, out of love for Jesus Christ and our fellow man. This ruling lets us keep doing that without the threat of the EEOC investigating us for following our faith,” he said.
Permanent Injunction Impact
- No enforcement against current of future CBA members of Title VII “in a manner that would require them to speak or communicate in favor of abortion, fertility treatments, or gender transition when such is contrary to the Catholic faith”.
- No utilizing the Pregnant Worker Fairness Act and its implementing regulations against CBA to require them to accommodate abortion or infertility treatments
- No EEOC-mandated speech code contrary to the Catholic faith, such as use of false pronouns, elimination of single-sex spaces, etc.
- No EEOC investigations on charges of discrimination against CBA members related to these issues or the issuance of “right to sue” letters to employees, effectively barring private lawsuits
- The April 15th ruling extends to “anyone acting in concert with or participating with” current and future CBA members but doesn’t cover non-CBA members.
To read the full order, click here.