Baltimore Catholic charity violated gay man's rights by not paying spousal benefits, court rules

Yahoo

29-04-2025

A federal judge in Baltimore has decreed that Catholic Relief Services must pay $60,000 to a gay, married information technology employee after it refused to continue providing health care benefits to his husband. The judge said the charitable organization had violated Maryland's antidiscrimination law.
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U.S. District Judge Julie Rubin found last week that the Catholic agency's decision not to provide coverage to Doe's spouse directly violated the Maryland Fair Employment Practices Act. Rubin agreed the group did not qualify for a religious exemption because the employee's activities were not directly tied to its religious activities.
'I'm very happy with Judge Rubin's ruling and am honored to be part of such a precedent-setting case that has helped clarify, for employers and employees alike, the legal protections Maryland law provides, especially for LGBTQ+ workers,' the employee, identified only as "John Doe," said in a press release from the law firm representing him, Brown, Goldstein, and Levy. 'I truly hope that CRS will see this ruling as an opportunity to promote the human dignity of employees in same-sex marriages by providing them the same opportunities and benefits granted to their straight counterparts.'
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The employee was identified for employment by a CRS recruiter in mid-2016, according to court documents. Doe traveled to Baltimore to interview for the position, which would focus solely on the IT side of CRS activities and would not be involved with the charitable functions of the organization.
Doe specifically inquired about the benefits packages offered by CRS.
The eligibility provision of CRS's Group Insurance Plan stated that 'dependent[s]' are covered, and the Plan defined '[d]ependent' as 'wife or husband; children to age 26; regardless of student status,' according to Doe's lawsuit.
During a follow-up conversation via telephone initiated by the recruiter, Doe inquired further about health care and benefits and whether his husband would also be covered. The pair are in a legal marriage.
'The recruiter responded, 'All dependents are covered.''
Doe accepted the offer and relocated his family to Baltimore. He received a package from Aetna shortly after he started working at Catholic Relief Services. The package specifically noted that his spouse was eligible for health benefits. Multiple representatives from CRS also confirmed his spouse's eligibility during the onboarding process.
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The couple received insurance cards, and both men sought medical attention during the following 16 months, which was covered without issue by Aetna.
All that changed in 2017 when CRS informed Doe that his husband had been improperly provided health care and other spousal benefits, and that it would cease all coverage beginning on October 1 of the same year.
Doe appealed the decision but was told by one senior official that some people within the organization wanted him fired and advised him not to press the issue.
The official was more threatening in a later meeting.
'During the meeting, the senior CRS official clarified that, if Mr. Doe were to pursue legal action, he would most likely be terminated,' Doe claimed in the lawsuit.
'CRS's retaliatory actions were malicious, intentional, and repeated,' Rubin wrote in her ruling.
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Doe was represented by Anthony May, Eve Hill, and Lauren DiMartino of Brown, Goldstein, and Levy along with co-counsel from Gilbert Employment Law.
'The court thoughtfully weighed all of the circumstances and correctly concluded that while [Mr. Doe] was dedicated to assisting CRS provide humanitarian relief to vulnerable individuals around the world, his specific job duties did not permit CRS to compensate him lesser than his colleagues merely because of who he loves,' Anthony said in the press release.
CRS officials said they were reviewing their options, including an appeal of the decision.