PLANS - PLANS Lawsuit

PLANS Lawsuit

In February 1998, PLANS filed suit against two California public school districts, Sacramento Unified School District and Twin Ridges Elementary School District operating Waldorf-methods schools; one operating a Waldorf based charter school and the other operating a Waldorf based magnet school. In the complaint PLANS argued that it was "informed and believes that a primary purpose and primary effect of said operation of Waldorf schools is to advance religion, including the religious doctrines of Anthroposophy", and as such were acting in violation of the First and Fourteenth Amendments of the United States Constitution and Article IX of the California Constitution.

In response to PLANS' 1999 Motion for Summary Judgement, the Court ruled against their contention that the primary purpose of the program in those schools was to advance religion, finding that the two school districts targeted have a secular, non-religious purpose for implementing Waldorf teaching methods in their schools, but allowed the case to proceed on the second question, whether a primary effect of the programs may be the unintended consequence of endorsing any religion to an extent that violates the Constitution.