Respondent rents her units to people without regard to their race, color, national origin, ancestry, or physical handicap. Respondent would not rent to anyone who engages in sex outside of marriage, whether they are single, divorced, widowed or married. Respondent has no religious objection to renting to people who are single, divorced, widowed or married. 'Respondent has rented her units to single, divorced and widowed persons. Respondent believes that God will judge her if she permits people to engage in sex outside of marriage in her rental units and that if she does so, she will be prevented from meeting her deceased husband in the hereafter. Respondent believes that sex outside of marriage is sinful, and that it is a sin for her to rent her units to people who will engage in nonmarital sex on her property. She is a member of Bidwell Presbyterian Church in Chico and has attended there for approximately 25 years. However, since she has received so many calls from unmarried couples seeking to rent her units, she simply tells prospective tenants that she prefers to rent to married couples. She prefers married couples because, for religious reasons, she opposes sex outside of marriage. When prospective tenants inquire about a vacant unit, respondent tells them she prefers married couples. 'When a vacancy occurs in one of the units, the unit is advertised for rent in local newspapers and is otherwise available to the general public. Respondent does not reside in any of the four units and visits the units occasionally to maintain them. The business is not organized or classified as a religious, charitable or other nonprofit concern. They are operated exclusively for business and commercial purposes, with income generated from the rentals reported as business income. 'Respondent owns and leases four rental units located at 675, 677, 683 and 685 Eastwood Avenue, Chico, California. The relevant facts set out below are as found by the commission in its final decision.

We reverse the decision of the Court of Appeal. The Court of Appeal reversed, believing the state may not constitutionally apply FEHA to a landlord whose religious beliefs make it sinful to rent to an unmarried couple. The Fair Employment and Housing Commission (commission) ruled that a landlord violated the statute by refusing to rent an apartment to an unmarried couple. or the owner of any housing accommodation to discriminate against any person because of the. Code, § 12900 et seq.) (FEHA) declares it to be 'unlawful. The California Fair Employment and Housing Act (Gov. Wadsworth as Amici Curiae on behalf of Respondent and Real Parties in Interest. Craig, Wilson, Sonsini, Goodrich & Rosati and Clyde J. Marsha Jones Moutrie, City Attorney (Santa Monica), Joseph Lawrence, Assistant City Attorney, Martin T. Goldenberg, Assistant City Attorney, and Maria Perez Manning, Deputy City Attorney, as Amici Curiae on behalf of Real Parties in Interest. Hahn, City Attorney (Los Angeles), Charles I. Funk as Amici Curiae on behalf of Respondent.ĭavid Link and Thomas F.

Green, Edward Tabash, John Beattie, Greenberg, Glusker, Fields, Claman & Machtinger and Roger L. Moon, Assistant District Attorney, Steven K. Johnston and Ann Perrin Farina for Respondent.Īrlo Smith, District Attorney (San Francisco), David C. Owyang, Prudence Kay Poppink, Eisen & Johnston Law Corporation, Jay-Allen Eisen, Marian M. Mikkelson, Deputy Attorneys General, Steven C. Medeiros, Louis Verdugo, Jr., Kathleen W. Kornblum, Assistant Attorney General, Manuel M.

Lungren, Attorneys General, Andrea Sheridan Ordin, Chief Assistant Attorney General, Carole R. Rierson as Amici Curiae on behalf of Petitioner. Stern, Jaffe, Trutanich, Scatena & Blum, Fred Blum, Proskauer, Rose, Getz & Mendelsohn, Jeffrey A. Reinach, Boothby & Yingst, Lee Boothby, Oliver Thomas, Marc D. Troobnick and Jay Alan Sekulow for Petitioner. PHILLIPS et al., Real Parties in Interest. 2d 700 EVELYN SMITH, Petitioner,įAIR EMPLOYMENT AND HOUSING COMMISSION, Respondent KENNETH C.

A star iword frefence to fehc