Kristen Waggoner

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Kristen Waggoner
Born
Kristen Kellie Behrends

1972 (age 51–52)
Longview, Washington, U.S.
EducationNorthwest University (BA)
Regent University (JD)
EmployerAlliance Defending Freedom
SpouseBenjamin Waggoner
Children3

Kristen Kellie Waggoner (born 1972) is an American attorney. She has been president and CEO of Alliance Defending Freedom, a right-wing Christian legal advocacy group, since 2022.

In 2018, Waggoner was the lead counsel defending a baker who had discriminated against a gay couple on religious freedom grounds in Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission.

Early life and education[edit]

Waggoner was born in 1972 in Longview, Washington, about an hour outside of Portland, as the eldest of four children. Her father was a school superintendent and a licensed Assemblies of God minister. Her mother was a stay-at-home mom who worked part-time in the accounting industry.[1]

Waggoner attended Christian schools from primary school through law school. Her father was the principal during her 1st through 12th grades. In high school she played volleyball and basketball. She graduated high school as valedictorian.[2]

She attended Northwest University, affiliated with the Assemblies of God, on a drama scholarship. After graduating magna cum laude from Northwest, she attended Regent University School of Law. At Regent she won "best oralist" at the Whittier Moot Court Competition, a national contest. She graduated cum laude in 1997 with a Juris Doctor.[3][non-primary source needed]

Career[edit]

After law school, Waggoner was a law clerk to Justice Richard B. Sanders of the Washington Supreme Court. She also interned with U.S. Representative Linda Smith. In 1998, she entered private practice with Ellis, Li & McKinstry, a Seattle law firm. Waggoner was elevated to partner in 2004.[citation needed]

Alliance Defending Freedom[edit]

Waggoner joined ADF in 2013 and moved to the firm's Scottsdale headquarters in 2014. During her tenure, ADF has been victorious as lead counsel in nine Supreme Court cases, including Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission.[4][non-primary source needed]

On October 1, 2022, Waggoner succeeded Michael Farris as CEO and president of ADF, retaining her role as General Counsel.[5]

Audio recording of oral argument at Masterpiece Cakeshop.

Arlene's Flowers[edit]

Waggoner represented the florist in the Arlene's Flowers Lawsuit when it was heard in the Washington State Supreme Court, arguing the case on First Amendment grounds. The court ruled against her.[6]

On June 25, 2018, the U.S. Supreme Court granted the petition for a writ of certiorari, vacated the judgment, and remanded the case to the Supreme Court of Washington for further consideration in light of the Masterpiece Cakeshop decision.[7][8] On June 6, 2019, the Washington Supreme Court unanimously ruled against Stutzman again, finding no evidence of religious animus.[9][10] Stutzman's attorneys once again requested the U.S. Supreme Court to take her case,[11][12] but certiorari was denied in July 2021.[13] Stutzman opted to settle with Ingersoll in November 2021, paying him $5,000.[14]

Masterpiece Cakeshop[edit]

The case Masterpiece Cakeshop arose from a dispute between Jack Phillips, a baker, and a gay couple after Phillips refused to bake a cake for the couple. The case made its way to the Supreme Court which took oral arguments on December 5, 2017.[15][16] Regarding her presentation, David A. French of National Review wrote: "[Waggoner] strongly and clearly made the most vital point — the issue was the artistic message, not the identity of the customer."[17] In 2018, Phillips prevailed in a 7–2 ruling.[18]

Personal life[edit]

Waggoner is married to Benjamin Waggoner, who also graduated from Regent Law School in 1997. The couple has three children. She is Pentecostal.[19]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Contrera, Jessica (July 4, 2018). "Inside the Christian legal powerhouse that keeps winning at the Supreme Court". Washington Post. Retrieved August 23, 2019.
  2. ^ Tubbs, Brett Wilson (May 12, 2016). "Kristen Waggoner Selected for Regent University's Alumnus of the Year Award". Regent University School of Law. Retrieved August 23, 2019.
  3. ^ "Kristen K. Waggoner". adflegal.org. Alliance Defending Freedom. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
  4. ^ "Kristen K. Waggoner Biography". Alliance Defending Freedom. Retrieved August 23, 2019.
  5. ^ "ADF names new president, CEO". adflegal.org. Alliance Defending Freedom. August 19, 2022. Retrieved September 5, 2022.
  6. ^ Kraemer, Kristen M. (July 17, 2017). "Richland floral shop owner wants US Supreme Court to review ruling". Union Bulletin. Retrieved August 23, 2019.
  7. ^ "Court Orders" (PDF). www.supremecourt.gov.
  8. ^ Wolf, Richard (June 25, 2018). "First cake, now flowers: Supreme Court gives florist who refused to serve gay wedding a new hearing". USA Today. Retrieved September 5, 2022.
  9. ^ Gutman, David (June 6, 2019). "Washington Supreme Court rules once more against Richland florist who refused flowers for gay wedding". The Seattle Times. Retrieved September 5, 2022.
  10. ^ State v. Arlene's Flowers, Inc., 441 P.3d 1203 (Wash. 2019).
  11. ^ "SCOTUS asked – again – to take Christian florist's case". OneNewsNow.com. Retrieved March 7, 2020.
  12. ^ "Search - Supreme Court of the United States".
  13. ^ "Court Orders" (PDF). www.supremecourt.gov.
  14. ^ "Richland florist who refused same-sex wedding job settles with couple". Yakima Herald. Associated Press. November 18, 2021. Retrieved November 22, 2021.
  15. ^ Savage, David (June 26, 2017). "Supreme Court will hear case of Colorado baker who refused to make wedding cake for same-sex couple". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved August 23, 2019.
  16. ^ Howe, Amy (September 11, 2017). "Wedding cakes v. religious beliefs?: In Plain English". SCOTUSblog. Retrieved August 23, 2019.
  17. ^ French, David (December 5, 2017). "Four Promising Takeaways from the Masterpiece Cakeshop Oral Argument". National Review. Retrieved August 23, 2019.
  18. ^ Pryts, Monica (April 5, 2019). "Lawyer says defending religious freedom is a calling from God". The Herald. Retrieved August 23, 2019.
  19. ^ "When profiling ADF's Kristin Waggoner, why not include facts about her Pentecostal roots?". July 9, 2018.

External links[edit]

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