Fourth Circuit to Hear Landmark Case Pitting Transgender Rights Against Religious Liberty at Liberty University

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit will soon hear oral arguments in Zinski v. Liberty University — a potentially landmark case that features a direct collision between Liberty University's religious doctrine and allegations of anti-transgender discrimination from a former employee. Lawyers for the university say the case is likely to reach the Supreme Court, making it one of the most consequential religious liberty cases in the pipeline. The central question is whether a religious institution's sincerely held doctrinal positions about gender and sexuality can legally inform its employment decisions — or whether federal anti-discrimination law requires religious organizations to set aside their beliefs when they conflict with an employee's gender identity. The case arrives at a moment when the legal landscape around transgender rights and religious liberty is shifting rapidly, with the Supreme Court's recent California notification ruling and the Trump administration's aggressive rollback of gender identity policies creating a legal environment that is far more favorable to religious institutions than it was even a year ago.