Are there actually any legal issues associated with Easter? Surely not!

I would like to say there are zero legal issues associated with Resurrection Sunday, popularly called Easter but unfortunately there are issues.

Even with the innocent secular emblems of Christmas there are issues. It makes me think about a friend who is a local professional artist. He had painted several Santa Clause images which by the way were very good. But he needed them protected as intellectual property so that some other individual could not legally use his now copyrighted images in a way that might make another individual or company profit from his talent and hard work.

Looking at the intellectual property side of Easter, what kind of things might be an issue? How about the Easter egg? Apparently painting and gifting eggs date back to at least the 13th century and later adopted by some Christians in the early church. Apparently, the egg had represented new life and rebirth in the pagan world and therefore came to be a symbol of Christ’s resurrection. Like my friend the professional painter, one that designs and decorates and/or paints an egg in an appealing specific manner may copyright the design so that it cannot otherwise have its likeness copied for commercial profit. Also consider as intellectual property a trademark which likeness represents a service or a product. We can all see for instance the trademarks of Nike, Amazon, Coca Cola, Apple, Hewlett Packard, Master Card, Google and McDonalds. These are symbols that relate to certain products and we don’t even have to see the company name. In the Easter business what about the distinguishable purple foil color of the Cadbury products? As you peruse the various products it’s easy to pick out the Cadbury products or the Lindt products with the gold foil and crouching bunny? Companies depend on these nuances because there are customers who appreciate and seek out these products finding them tasty, affordable and maybe a symbol of their happy childhood, wanting a repeat of these happy memories for themselves and their families. So a quick look at the Easter chocolates display can be quick when your products stand out for your discerning eye. In 2010, a legal issue arose between Cadbury and Nestle over the specific purple tint of Cadbury. Cadbury won the fight in the courts.

There are even a few Easter related recipes that are protected, but mainly through European agencies such as the European Union, Protected European Indication mark. It seems that more so in Europe there is a greater interest in individualistic painted designs.

Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act require employers in the United States, having more than fifteen employees to accommodate employees who hold reasonably serious religious beliefs, observances or practices. This is however provided that it does not create an undue hardship. Consider hospital employees for instance since patients require twenty-four hour care during every day of the week including a Judeo-Christian Sabbath. While I think most individuals prefer to not work any weekends some may do so as a supplement to their financial situation or because it works better for a family schedule or they prefer time off when most people are working Monday through Friday. There may of course be times when a typical Monday through Friday employee may be needed to

work on the Sabbath because of a shortage of available workers. I think a lack of a sufficient number of employees working on a Sabbath or other religious holiday can be an undue hardship when patient lives are potentially at stake because care or services (such as nursing, x-ray, lab or respiratory therapy) are unavailable. In 2023, the United States Supreme Court held that an employer must show a substantial increased cost in order to deny an employee request for religious accommodation. An employee requesting reasonable accommodation must submit in a timely fashion and in writing when a reasonable chance exists of interfering with a religious practice.

Having a saving relationship with the one that walked the earth, Yeshua and known in English as Jesus means having an eternal relationship with the Son of God. Celebrating Christmas as God’s gift to man by sending His Son is a joy, but the truest celebration in Christianity is Resurrection Sunday or Easter when the risen Christ is celebrated. What hope can there be in eternity if you don’t know that Christ died on a cross and after three days as he said he arose from the dead? An unselfish death meant as the ultimate sacrifice for the sins of us all. There is no reasonable accommodation needed to Believe or to worship. God has no copyright or trademark. Whether one uses the sign of the cross or a fish as a symbol of faith, there is no legal maneuver necessary.

John 3:1-5 (ESV) says, “Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, ia ruler of the Jews. 2 This man came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him.” 3 Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” 4 Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” 5 Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.”

I pray that God will open the eyes of any that read this and do not understand and will seek the salvation of Jesus Christ.

This article is informative only and not meant to be all inclusive. Additionally this article does not serve as legal advice to the reader and does not constitute an attorney- client relationship. The reader should seek counsel from their attorney should any questions exist.

"No representation is made that the quality of legal services performed is greater than the quality of legal services performed by other lawyers."

THE VIEWS OF SUBMITTED EDITORIALS MAY NOT BE THE EXPRESS VIEWS OF THE ALABAMA GAZETTE.