LANSING, Mich. (MIRS News)- A federal judge dismissed a lawsuit challenging Elliot-Larsen Civil Rights Act (ELCRA) protections based on sexual orientation and gender identity.

U.S. District Judge Jane M. Beckering dismissed Christian Healthcare Centers’ lawsuit against Attorney General Dana Nessel without prejudice on Wednesday, “for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction,” and she held that neither ELCRA nor the Equal Accommodations Act “facially fails to recognize religious freedoms like those asserted by plaintiff.”

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“Indeed, the ECLRA expressly provides a form of redress for plaintiff’s concerns about its hiring practices that plaintiff has not utilized,” the judge’s 24-page opinion reads.

Nessel said in a statement that she is “pleased” with Beckering’s ruling, noting that it “also recognizes that a plaintiff cannot bring speculative claims unsupported by any facts.”

Christian Healthcare, a nonprofit with clinics in Plainfield Township and Newaygo, sought a preliminary injunction to keep the AG and the Michigan Civil Rights Commission from enforcing the state’s ELCRA law, which prohibits discrimination based on gender identity and sexual orientation.

In the August lawsuit, Christian Healthcare claimed the Michigan Supreme Court’s 5-2 July ruling in Rouch World required them to hire people who don’t share their faith and to use pronouns that don’t accord with a person’s biological sex.

The Supreme Court held that ELCRA provides protection based on sexual orientation and gender identity.

Earlier this month, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed SB 4, which expanded ELCRA to include LGBTQ individuals.

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