Department of Justice backs Catholic football coach suing university over COVID vaccine mandate

Department of Justice backs Catholic football coach suing university over COVID vaccine mandate

Coach Nick Rolovich launched a suit against Washington State University several years ago after he was fired by the school for refusing the COVID-19 shot. [...]

Coach fired mid-season for his faith gets rare DOJ backing in federal appeals court

Nick Rolovich sued Washington State University for $25 million after being fired for refusing the COVID-19 vaccine due to Catholic beliefs. University officials rejected his religious exemption, citing concerns about institutional reputation and donor backlash. The U.S. Department of Justice filed an amicus brief supporting Rolovich’s Title VII religious freedom claim in the 9th Circuit. A federal judge dismissed Rolovich’s case, calling his …

Department of Justice backs Catholic football coach in COVID vaccine lawsuit

A Catholic football coach is being backed by the U.S. Department of Justice in his lawsuit against a public university that fired him for refusing to take a COVID-19 vaccine. Nick Rolovich first sued Washington State University in 2022 after he was dismissed from the school for refusing the vaccination in 2021. In his lawsuit Rolovich said the university failed to uphold its contract with him when it fired him for refusing the shot. The suit all…

Rolovich appeals dismissal of multimillion dollar wrongful termination lawsuit against WSU

Fired head coach Nick Rolovich is asking the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals to overturn a federal court ruling from January 2025 that ended his multimillion-dollar wrongful termination lawsuit against WSU. Rolovich was terminated in 2021 after refusing to vaccinate amid the COVID-19 pandemic, a choice he argues was protected under the state’s religious exemption rules. Rolovich is represented by Becket, a non-profit public interest law firm spec…