JOSHUA PAYNE-ELLIOTT v. ROMAN CATHOLIC ARCHDIOCESE OF INDIANAPOLIS, INC.

── JOSHUA PAYNE-ELLIOTT v. ROMAN CATHOLIC ARCHDIOCESE OF INDIANAPOLIS, INC. ── Case No.: 22S-CP-00302 Court: Indiana Supreme Court Date: August 31, 2022 Author: Justice Geoffrey Slaughter County of Origin: Marion Category: Civil Decision: Affirmed Justice David and Justice Goff concur in result. Justice Massa concurs. Justice Rush not participating Religious freedom protected by the First Amendment to the United States Constitution encompasses the right of religious institutions “to decide for themselves, free from state interference, matters of church government as well as those of faith and doctrine.” Our Lady of Guadalupe Sch. v. Morrissey-Berru, 140 S. Ct. 2049, 2055 (2020) (quoting Kedroff v. St. Nicholas Cathedral of Russian Orthodox Church in N. Am., 344 U.S. 94, 116 (1952)). This principle, known as the church-autonomy doctrine, see, e.g., Brazauskas v.