Washington Ethical Society v. District of Columbia, 249 F.2d 127 (1957), was a case of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. The Washington Ethical Society functions much like a church, but regards itself as a non-theistic religious institution, honoring the importance of ethical living without mandating a belief in a supernatural origin for ethics. The case involved denial of the Society's application for tax exemption as a religious organization. The D.C. Circuit reversed the ruling of the Tax Court for the District Columbia and found that the Society was a religious organization under the Distinct of Columbia Code, 47-801a (1951). The Society thus was granted its tax exemption.

Significance

Along with Fellowship of Humanity v. County of Alameda, this was one of the earliest cases establishing the right in the U.S. of nontheistic institutions that function like churches to be treated similarly to theistic religious institutions under the law. This case is sometimes cited as establishing secular humanism as a religion under the law. That characterization of the case is disputed by others, for a number of reasons:

Rationale for decision

The decision of the court was written by then-Judge Warren Burger (who was later appointed to the U.S. Supreme Court). Judge E. Barrett Prettyman and Judge Charles Fahy joined. The decision stated: