ROBERT L. GREENE
EXPERIENCE
1987 - 2006
• PRIVATE LAW PRACTICE, New York.
Religious Liberty Law. Actively
engaged in representing Churches and Religious Organizations
of many different faiths in a variety of different matters
since 1987. He is also engaged in defending the right
to practice one's religious faith without government
interference and church land use issues. Some of this
work has been as counsel to the Becket Fund for Religious
Liberty, a public interest law firm which is a leading
defender of religious rights.
• Several
cases involving governmental interference in religious
land use, representing a variety of different faiths.
• A case in which a Church had been deprived of it's
tax-exemption due to an anonymous letter writing campaign.
• Several cases involving court interference with
Church governance.
• A case of a Native American high school student
who had been locked in school detention for three months
because he was wearing a headband symbolizing a particular
religious training process he was undergoing.
• An Amicus Curiae brief to the United States Court
of Appeals for the 10th Circuit in a Native American Religious
Rights case. The brief was written on behalf of the Bureau
of Catholic Indian Missions, the General Conference of
Seventh-day Adventists, Clifton Kirkpatrick, Stated Clerk
of the General Assembly, of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.),
the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America,
the Baptist Joint Committee on Public Affairs and the
Council on American Islamic Relations.
• Internal disputes involving church governance.
• Church disputes with clergy.
• Church owned and operated businesses, including
bakeries, publishing, retail sales, construction and operation
of real estate, homeless housing and job training.
Other matters of concern to religious organizations
such as
• Tax Exemptions
• Non-Profit Incorporation
• Bylaws and governance disputes
• Employment Contracts.
• Real Estate
• Wage and Hour Law for Religious Employees
• General Non-profit corporate matters.
Other Recent Cases of Note:
Alexander v. Rendell; Litigation in the Western
District of Pennsylvania successfully protecting mentally
retarded persons from involuntary transfers bythe state
of Pennsylvanina.
Tomas v. Gillespie; Successful
important copyright litigation on behalf of the estate
of Dizzy Gillespie.
Teaching: Adjunct Professor, Seton Hall Law School
2000-2001.
Negotiations, Counseling, General Representation:
Hospitals, Medical Groups, Entertainment, Internet,
Corporate, Governmental entities, Non-profit corporations,
Private and Public Corporate Finance, Directors and
officers Liability, Corporate Governance, Individuals,
Non Profit Corporations, Physicians, Medical Societies,
Health Maintenance Organizations, Health Care Finance,
Hospital Construction Corporations, International Trade,
Government finance.
1985-1987
Litigation: Trial, Appellate and Administrative
work, Federal and State Courts, freedom of religion,
employment and labor law, general liability, municipal
liability, civil rights, Indian law, ERISA, corporate,
medical licensure, securities, constitutional issues,
Medicare payments, real estate, copyright.
1983-1985
Governmental Affairs: National Health Leadership
Council, Participated in drafting various legislation
on such matters as Indian Health Care issues, municipal
regulation. Testified before U.S. Senate Indian Affairs
Committee.
1978-1983
• VLADECK, WALDMAN, ELIAS & ENGELHARD, New
York.
Employment and labor law litigation, negotiations,
arbitrations. Also served as Chairman of the Board of
a hospital in bankruptcy reorganization.
1975-77
• COMMITTEE OF INTERNS AND RESIDIENTS, New York.
Deputy General Counsel.
Employment and labor law litigation, negotiations
and counseling of largest union of Physicians and Dentists
in the U.S. Wide variety of health care and hospital
issues, including physician liability, government relations
and labor law issues. Supervised a legal services program.
• CITY OF MADISON EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES COMMISSION,
Madison Wisconsin. General Counsel and Hearing Examiner.
Employment discrimination litigation. Presided over
Administrative Hearings on employment discrimination
charges, advises Commission, trained staff.
• CITY OF MADISON EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES COMMISSION,
Madison Wisconsin. Project Director.
Researched and wrote The Potential Impact of Seniority
Based Layoffs on Affirmative Action in Public Employment
for the Midwest Intergovernmental Equal Opportunities
Council on a grant from the U.S. Civil Service Commission.
BAR ADMISSIONS
United States Supreme Court,
U.S. Courts of Appeals, Second Circuit, Third Circuit,
Seventh Circuit, District of Columbia Circuit.
U.S. District Courts: Western District of Pennsylvania,
Eastern, Northern and Southern Districts of New York,
Western District of Wisconsin.
New York State Supreme Court.
EDUCATION
• 1976 University of Wisconsin Law School, J. D.
• 1973 University of Redlands, Redlands, California,
B. A.
• 1972 University of Chile, Institute of Economics
Santiago, Chile.
LANGUAGES
English and Spanish fluently.
PUBLIC SERVICE
• Various Non-Profit Boards including corporation
to develop homeless housing.
• Federal Bar Council Public Service Committee
(1994-97)
• Judicial Conference of the US Courts for the
Second Circuit Native American Advisory Task Force Committee
on Race Ethnicity and Gender, 1995-1996
• National Health Leadership Council- Secretary
Treasurer, 1992.
PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS
• American Bar Association
• Federal Bar Council (1994-1997)
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ROMAN P. STORZER
"Roman P. Storzer is a Washington lawyer who has
represented dozens of religious groups on land use cases
and is one of the country's most experienced litigators
in this field."
Religion
Newswriters Association
Mr. Storzer is one "of the country's leading RLUIPA
advocates."
Center for State and Local Government
Law,
Hastings College of Law
"They are the best at what they do, which is win
religious land-use cases."
Gary Stern, Religion Writer,
Journal News
2004 - 2006
• Law
Office of Roman P. Storzer
After leaving The Becket Fund for Religious
Liberty, Mr. Storzer practiced independently, representing
religious institutions nationwide in a variety of religious
freedom matters. Some notable victories include:
• A decision
by a federal district court supporting The Church of
the Hills in a lawsuit against the Township of Bedminster,
N.J. in an attempt to expand its church.
• Preventing
the County of San Diego from shutting down the Vietnamese
Buddhist Meditation Congregation.
• Thwarting
the Camden County Improvement Authority's attempt to
seize Living Faith Ministries' church and allowing it
to continue to exist in an area of economic redevelopment.
• Settling
a lawsuit between the City of Chesapeake, Virginia
and First Pentecostal United Holy Church in another
eminent domain action for $1.1 million.
These efforts have been widely reported in the press.
Media inquiries can be directed to (202) 857-9766 or
by email.
• March 26, 2006, Rochester, NY:
"Growing
churches spreading their wings," Rochester
Democrat and Chronicle.
• March 2, 2006, Bedminster, NJ:
"Court
rules in favor of church," The Reporter.
• March 2, 2006, Bedminster, NJ:
" Federal
judge won't dismiss Church of the Hills Lawsuit,"
Recorder Newspapers.
• February 2, 2006, Rockland County, NY:
"Suffern
Seeks To Close Bikur Cholim Shabbos House,"
The Jewish Press
• October 28, 2005, Chesapeake, VA: "Chesapeake
settles property dispute with church for $1.1 million,"
Virginian-Pilot.
• August 19, 2005, New York, NY:
"Flushing temple society trustees get a boost;
New York Attorney General files supportive brief,"
India Abroad.
• August 3, 2005
San Diego, CA: "Buddhists
Reach Accord With County, Can Resume Worship,"
L.A. Daily Journal.
• July 28, 2005, Queens, NY:
"Spitzer
reverses decision on Hindu Temple Society,"
Times Ledger.
• July 24, 2005, Bedminster, NJ:
"'Mega-churches'
evoking hostility," Courier News at A1 (July
24, 2005).
• July 14, 2005)
"Attorney
General Sides With Flushing Temple's Board,"
Queens Chronicle.
• July 14, 2005
"Church
files suit over vote," Somerset Reporter
Debates and conferences on church-state issues:
• October 5, 2005, San Francisco,
CA:
Roman Storzer will debate Professor Marci Hamilton
at UC Hastings' Center
for State and Local Government Law's conference
on "Cities in the Middle: The Emerging Debate over
Religion in Public Life."
• May 12, 2006, Columbia, MD:
Land Use Institute, hosted by the Maryland State
Bar Association in cooperation with the University of
Baltimore School of Law and the University of Maryland
School of Law
1995 - 2004
The
Becket Fund for Religious Liberty
Executive Vice President and Director of Litigation
In his decade-long tenure at The Becket
Fund, Mr. Storzer represented and assisted numerous
religious institutions, individuals, schools and other
entities in First Amendment cases. He has defended:
• The rights of churches, synagogues, temples and
schools to be free from unduly burdensome land use regulation
• The ability of religious institutions to be free
from judicial interference in their internal affairs
• The right of religious employees not to be discriminated
against.
• Students who have been discriminated against
in the public schools.
• Municipalities who have recognized the traditional
role of religion in our culture.
• Religious property from being taken by overzealous
governmental authorities.
• The right not to be excluded from public fora
simply because one's message may be religious.
Mr. Storzer initiated the Becket Fund's RLUIPA
project, becoming the preeminent authority on the rights
of religious institutions and incarcerated persons to
be free from discrimination and burdensome regulation.
In that capacity and elsewhere, he has authored several
papers on that subject and others:
• "The
Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act
of 2000: A Constitutional Response to Unconstitutional
Zoning Practices," 9 Geo. Mason L.Rev. 929,
945 (2001), co-written by Roman Storzer and Anthony
R. Picarello, Jr.
• "Effect
of O Centro Supreme Court Decision on RLUIPA Cases,"
The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty's www.RLUIPA.org.
• "When
Land Use Issues Are Also Religious Freedom Issues: The
Religious Land Use And Institutionalized Persons Act
Of 2000 And The Four Constitutional Commandments Of
Zoning Practices." FindLaw Legal Commentary
(2002), co-written by Roman Storzer and Anthony R. Picarello,
Jr.
• "Struggling
As Churches With Neighbors," originally published
by The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty.
• "The Souter Dissent: A Failed Argument,"
in Church-State
Relations In Crisis; Debating Neutrality (S. Monsma,
ed., 2002), co-written by Roman Storzer and Kevin J.
Hasson, discussing Justice Souter's dissenting opinion
in Mitchell v. Helms, 530 U.S. 793 (2000).
• "No
Muzzles On the Pulpit," National Law Journal
(Oct. 18, 2004).
• "Catholic
Utopia?," AFF Brainwash: A column on the legal
and other issues surrounding Domino Pizza founder Thomas
Monaghan's plans to build the Town of Ave Maria in southwestern
Florida.
• October 23, 2005, Rockaway Township, NJ: "Religion,
Land Zoning." The Ledger (Oct. 15, 2005)
BAR ADMISSIONS
United States Supreme Court
United States Court of Appeals, Second Circuit, Third
Circuit, Sixth Circuit, Seventh Circuit, Ninth Circuit,
Tenth Circuit
United States District Court, District of Columbia,
Western District of Michigan, Northern District of Illinois
Maryland Court of Appeals
District of Columbia Court of Appeals
EDUCATION
B. Comm. (Hon), Queens
University, Kingston
J.D. (with Honors), George Washington
University Law School, Washington, D.C.
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