Landor v. Louisiana Dept of Corrections and Public Safety · ¶74

As a matter of text, the question whether RLUIPA authorizes a claim for money damages is controlled by a unanimous holding this Court issued just six Terms ago. In Tan zin, 592 U. S. 43, we held that RFRA’s materially identical terms authorize a damages claim. Our analysis was straightforward. First, we ascertained the who. We identified the potential defendants in a RFRA lawsuit, asking whether “injured parties can sue Government officials in their personal capacities.” Id., at 47. And to that question, we said that “RFRA’s text provides a clear answer: They can.” Ibid. RFRA authorizes lawsuits not just against a “government” as colloquially understood, but also against government “official[s]” and “other person[s] acting under color of law.” §§2000bb–1(c), 2000bb–2(1). This language, we noted, echoes “one of the most well-known civil rights statutes: 42 U. S. C. §1983,” which…

slip opinion, revised 6/28/26
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