Missionaries of Saint John the Baptist, Inc. v. Joel Frederic

Summary

The Kentucky Supreme Court held that the church’s RLUIPA defense was properly before the court because the parties tried it by implied consent. Applying the substantial-burden factors used in federal land-use cases, the court concluded that denying permission to build the proposed grotto did not substantially burden religious exercise and that the zoning ordinance did not violate RLUIPA’s equal-terms provision. The court affirmed the Court of Appeals’ no-violation determination on different grounds and left standing its unchallenged conclusion that the Board exceeded its statutory authority.