Truce Called: Masterpiece Cakeshop And State Agree To Walk Away

DENVER, CO – Masterpiece Cakeshop and the State of Colorado have settled on a truce, the Colorado Attorney General’s office announced Tuesday.

The Colorado Civil Rights Commission will voluntarily dismiss a state administrative action against Lakewood-based Masterpiece Cakeshop and its owner, Jack Phillips, for refusing to create an allegedly transgender-themed birthday cake for Denver lawyer Autumn Scardina.

Phillips was slapped by the commission for discrimination in 2017 and he filed suit, with the help of the Alliance Defending Freedom alleging he was a victim of "unconstitutional bullying" by the state.

“After careful consideration of the facts, both sides agreed it was not in anyone’s best interest to move forward with these cases," Attorney General Phil Weiser said in a statement. "The larger constitutional issues might well be decided down the road, but these cases will not be the vehicle for resolving them. Equal justice for all will continue to be a core value that we will uphold as we enforce our state’s and nation’s civil rights laws.”

Scardina may still pursue a suit against Phillips if she chooses to, the statement said.

“Jack’s victory is great news for everyone," Alliance Defending Freedom's executive director Kristen Waggoner said in a statement. "Tolerance and respect for good-faith differences of opinion are essential in a diverse society like ours. They enable us to peacefully coexist with each another. But the state’s demonstrated and ongoing hostility toward Jack because of his beliefs is undeniable."

Both sides will pay their own legal fees, which have become significant.

Daniel Ramos, executive director of One Colorado an LGBTQ advocacy group issued the following statement:

"Despite the mutual agreement between the State of Colorado and Masterpiece Cakeshop, the law is still the law. No matter who you are, who you love, or what you believe, Coloradans across our state — including LGBTQ Coloradans and their families — are still protected under Colorado law from discrimination in the areas of employment, housing and public accommodations.

"The fact remains that Colorado has a civil rights division and anti-discrimination laws that equally protect the fundamental rights of all Coloradans. Businesses may decide what products or services they offer, but they do not get to pick and choose who they offer those products or services to. The very narrow ruling by the Supreme Court in Masterpiece vs. Colorado Civil Rights Commission does not change our country’s long-standing principle that businesses open to the public must be open to all.”

The first ruling by the commission against Phillips was based on an incident where Phillips refused to create a wedding cake for Charlie Craig and David Mullins, a gay couple, in 2012 (before gay marriage was legal in Colorado or the U.S.).

With the help of Alliance Defending Freedom, Phillips took that case all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, who ruled (narrowly) in his favor in 2017, saying he reserved the right to withdraw his artistic abilities from the creation of a cake that celebrated a gay marriage, which violated his religious beliefs.

Related: Gay Wedding Cake Case: US Supreme Court Sides With CO Baker
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Related: LGBT Wedding Cake Case Is About More Than Baked Goods
Related: Gay Marriage: CO Wedding Cake Bakery Gets DOJ help

The Commission’s vote to dismiss the state administrative case was unanimous, Weiser said in a statement Tuesday.

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