Notre Dame Law School awarded its 2026 Prize for Religious Liberty to the Becket Fund — a nonprofit law firm that has secured 13 Supreme Court victories in the past 15 years defending the First Amendment’s religious liberty protections.
“We’re deeply honored to be recognized with the religious liberty prize,” Becket President and CEO Mark Rienzi told EWTN News.
“We’re honored to be able to be part of fighting to protect something that is very important for our country and the Church,” said Reinzi, who accepted the award at the July 8 conclusion of Notre Dame’s sixth annual Religious Liberty Summit in Chicago.
Becket — established in 1994 to provide cost-free legal counsel to those whose religious liberties were violated — has an undefeated record at the Supreme Court.
Its lawyers represented the Little Sisters of the Poor and Hobby Lobby against contraception mandates, defended the rights of Maryland parents to opt their children out of gender-related coursework that conflicted with their religious beliefs, and backed a Catholic foster care agency that only placed children with opposite-sex married couples.
G. Marcus Cole, a dean and professor of law at Notre Dame, said during the award ceremony that when the university started giving out the award, “we always imagined that it would go to one person.”
“But when we think about the Becket Fund, it is an entire team of lawyers, led by Mark Rienzi, who have made a difference in our world, who have made our lives better,” he said. “And for that reason, we thought it only appropriate to give the award to the Becket Fund as an entity."
Ongoing fights for religious liberty
The most recent victory secured by Becket came in Mahmoud v. Taylor, which ensured parents in Montgomery County, Maryland, had a right to opt their children out of coursework that included material related to gender that conflicted with their religious faith.
Rienzi told EWTN News that “parents don’t give up the right to [raise] their children when they drop their kids off at the schoolhouse gates.” He added: “Your children don’t belong to the state just because you use a public school.”
Becket represented Catholic, Ethiopian Orthodox, and Muslim parents in the lawsuit. Rienzi said religious parents have a right to “operate equally as a full citizen and full member of the public” by utilizing the public school system while maintaining the right to instill religious values in their children.
“[This was] the most important case in at least 50 or 100 years in establishing that principle,” he said.
Becket also secured the 2020 victory for the Little Sisters of the Poor in which the Supreme Court ruled in favor of federal regulations that exempted the religious sisters from mandatory contraception coverage in insurance plans.
The sisters, however, are back in court after the governments of Pennsylvania and New Jersey challenged those exemptions on separate grounds than those on which the court previously ruled. This case is now in an appellate court, which heard oral arguments on July 7. Becket is representing them again and Rienzi is the lead attorney on the case.
“It’s outrageous that governments keep volunteering for the beating they get when they keep [going after] the Little Sisters of the Poor,” Rienzi said.
He said “the law is really, really clear” that Pennsylvania cannot remove their exemptions from the mandate.
Becket is also representing a coalition of Catholic preschools in Colorado that is suing the state because they were excluded from a “universal” tuition program. The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear the case.
Notre Dame awarded Becket the prize less than one week after Americans celebrated the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, which culminated in the adoption of the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights, which secured religious freedom.
“God created everybody equal and equally free and gave them rights,” Rienzi said, adding that religious freedom is “essential to the declaration’s idea of who we are as a country and … [it] is crucial for maintaining it.”
“It’s a shame that you still have to fight about it,” Rienzi said. “But on the other hand, it’s worth fighting for.”
Facts Only
* Notre Dame Law School awarded the 2026 Prize for Religious Liberty to the Becket Fund.
* The Becket Fund has secured 13 Supreme Court victories in the past 15 years defending First Amendment religious liberty protections.
* Becket was established in 1994 to provide cost-free legal counsel for violations of religious liberties.
* The firm represented the Little Sisters of the Poor and Hobby Lobby against contraception mandates.
* The firm defended Maryland parents' rights to opt children out of gender-related coursework conflicting with religious beliefs.
* Becket backed a Catholic foster care agency placing children with opposite-sex married couples.
* A recent victory involved *Mahmoud v. Taylor*, establishing the right for parents to opt their children out of coursework conflicting with religious faith.
* Becket secured a 2020 victory for the Little Sisters of the Poor regarding mandatory contraception exemptions in insurance plans.
* Becket is currently representing the Little Sisters of the Poor against challenges to contraceptive exemptions and a coalition of Catholic preschools in Colorado over tuition programs.
Executive Summary
The Becket Fund, a nonprofit law firm, received the 2026 Prize for Religious Liberty from Notre Dame Law School. The award recognizes their work in defending First Amendment religious liberty protections through legal action. Becket has secured 13 Supreme Court victories over the past 15 years defending these protections. Mark Rienzi, President and CEO of Becket, accepted the award at the July 8 conclusion of the Religious Liberty Summit in Chicago. The firm was established in 1994 to provide free legal counsel to those whose religious liberties were violated.
The firm's legal victories include representing the Little Sisters of the Poor and Hobby Lobby against contraception mandates, defending Maryland parents' rights regarding gender-related coursework, and supporting a Catholic foster care agency placing children with opposite-sex married couples. G. Marcus Cole of Notre Dame noted that the award was given to the entity rather than an individual due to the team effort involved.
Recent legal activity includes a victory in *Mahmoud v. Taylor*, which affirmed parents' right to opt children out of gender coursework conflicting with religious faith. Becket also secured a 2020 victory for the Little Sisters of the Poor regarding mandatory contraception exemptions. The firm is currently representing the Little Sisters of the Poor and a coalition of Catholic preschools in Colorado regarding tuition programs.
Full Take
The narrative frames religious liberty as an essential, foundational element of American constitutionalism, positioning legal defense as a critical civic mission rather than mere litigation. The pattern observed is the construction of a successful legal entity—the Becket Fund—as the necessary vehicle for systemic change, moving the focus from individual grievances to institutional impact. The framing implicitly suggests that true protection lies not just in abstract constitutional guarantees but in sustained, expert-led collective action. This elevates the work of the firm from advocacy to foundational contribution, which justifies the high honor bestowed by an academic institution.
The juxtaposition of specific victories—such as those concerning contraception, gender education, and foster care placement—demonstrates that religious liberty fights are multifaceted, spanning personal autonomy, public education mandates, and institutional policy. This breadth suggests a pattern where abstract rights are operationalized through concrete legal challenges against state and institutional power. The defense of the Little Sisters of the Poor in multiple high-stakes cases illustrates a sustained fight against administrative and institutional restrictions imposed by government bodies, suggesting that the cost of religious freedom is often borne by vulnerable groups facing incremental legal attrition rather than singular crises.
The appeal to the historical context of the Declaration of Independence suggests an attempt to anchor contemporary struggles within a seemingly immutable historical ideal of equality. The tension arises between the stated reality—that continuous fighting is necessary—and the celebratory tone surrounding the award, which risks creating a dependency on external validation for the continuation of difficult legal work. This dynamic prompts inquiry into whether celebrating incremental victories can inadvertently diminish the long-term commitment required to sustain these complex, evolving battles for autonomy.
Bridge Questions: How does the institutional recognition of legal defense shape the strategy and focus of groups advocating for religious liberty in different contexts? What are the systemic costs associated with fighting these specific types of regulatory challenges across various state and federal jurisdictions? If religious freedom is essential to maintaining the national structure, what mechanisms can ensure that protection remains robust against shifting political priorities over time?
Sentinel — Human
The article presents reported facts about an award and associated legal advocacy; its structure is typical of journalistic narrative reporting rather than abstract synthesis.