U.S. appeals court to reconsider Louisiana’s Ten Commandments law it struck down

A copy of the Ten Commandments is posted along with other historical documents in a hallway of the Georgia Capitol, Thursday, June 20, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/John Bazemore, File)

A federal appeals court will reconsider its recent decision declaring “plainly unconstitutional” a Louisiana law requiring the display of the Ten Commandments in all classrooms of the state’s public schools and universities.

In a brief order, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans said its 17 active judges will sit “en banc” to review the June 20 decision by a unanimous three-judge panel.

That decision was a victory for parents and students who said Louisiana infringed their First Amendment religious rights, and a defeat for Republicans and conservative groups who wanted expressions of faith to be more prominent in society.

In a joint statement, the ACLU and other groups representing the law’s opponents said they remain confident the principles underlying the First Amendment, “which guarantee religious freedom for all students and families, will prevail in the end.”

Spokespeople for Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry and Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill, both Republicans, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The 5th Circuit is widely considered among the country’s most conservative federal appeals courts, though Democratic presidents appointed two of the three judges who struck down the Louisiana law.

Monday’s order set aside that decision. Oral arguments have not been scheduled.

Families claimed law violated First Amendment

Louisiana’s law required the display of posters or framed versions of the Ten Commandments in K-12 schools and state-funded colleges.

Displays were to be at least 11 inches by 14 inches, with the Commandments being the “central focus” and printed in a large, easy-to-read font.

Nine families, including clergy, with children in public schools sued, saying the law violated the constitutional prohibition against state establishment of religion.

The law has not taken effect, after being blocked last November by a lower court judge.

Louisiana became the first U.S. state requiring displays of the Ten Commandments since the Supreme Court struck down a similar Kentucky law in 1980.

Arkansas and Texas passed their own laws in 2025 requiring similar displays, prompting lawsuits.

In seeking en banc review, Louisiana and school board defendants said the appeals court panel mistakenly relied on an abandoned Supreme Court precedent.

They also said the panel misapplied that court’s 2022 decision favouring a Washington high school football coach who prayed with players at the 50-yard line after games.