An American Christian baker who won a case at the US Supreme Court in 2018 for refusing to bake a cake for a gay wedding is back in court for another lawsuit.
Jack Philips is on trial this week after lawyer Autumn Scardina sued him for refusing to bake a cake pink on the outside and blue on the inside to celebrate a gender transition in 2019. Philips declined to bake it, arguing his religious beliefs prevented him from providing the service.
Before suing Philips, Scardina had started legal proceedings against him with the Colorado Civil Rights Commission which agreed Philips had been discriminatory towards her. Philips then sued Colorado State arguing they were pursuing a “crusade to crush” him.
Philips and the State of Colorado then agreed to drop charges against each other. Rather than appeal the decision, Scardina decided to pursue an independent lawsuit seeking the equivalent of more than £70,000 in damages, fines and attorney’s fees arguing Philips had violated the anti-discrimination law and the consumer protection law.
Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) has been defending Philips since 2012. ADF’s General Counsel Kristen Waggoner, who represents Philips, took to Twitter to express her thoughts on Philips’ case. She said: “Jack Phillips of Masterpiece Cakeshop is being targeted again for his religious beliefs. No one should be forced to create expression that violates their conscience. This culture of coercion needs to stop.”
Earlier this month a judge decided to dismiss one of the claims of the lawsuit arguing that Philips had not violated the consumer protection law decision that ADF described as “the first step towards the final justice”.