The Rights of Student Religious Organizations after Christian Legal Society v. Martinez

In Christian Legal Society v. Martinez, a sharply divided Supreme Court held that officials at a public institution in California might require an on-campus religious group to admit all students, including those who disagree with its beliefs, as a condition of being recognized. Although Christian Legal Society has severe negative implications, it does not destroy the rights of student religious groups on public university campuses. To the contrary, student religious groups retain significant rights—the right to express their beliefs, the right to receive benefits from the university, and, in some circumstances, to exclude those individuals who do not share their faith.