Werft
Werft v. Desert Southwest Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church
Opinion
Lead Opinion
We must decide whether the claim of a minister, seeking damages from his church for employment discrimination based on a failure to accommodate his disabilities, falls within either the ministerial exception first articulated in McClure v. Salvation Army, 460 F.2d 553 (5th Cir.1972), or the theory of Bollard v. California Province of the Society of Jesus, 196 F.3d 940 (9th Cir.1999) (sexual harassment claims fall outside ministerial exception).
I.Background
A pastor and minister of the Vista de la Montaña United Methodist Church (“the Church”) in Tucson, Arizona, Andrew E. Werft (“Werft”) alleges that despite having Attention Deficit Disorder (“ADD”), dyslexia, and certain heart problems, he was able to perform his ministerial duties with minor accommodations. The Church, however, refused to make any accommodations and instead “forced him to resign from his pastoral position....”
Werft filed suit in state court in August 2002, alleging that the Church discriminated against him by failing to accommodate his needs. Specifically, Werft claims he was forced to resign from his position and the Church’s actions amounted to a breach of contract and violation of Title VII of the Civil…