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Page Number: 7.0

4 

MASTERPIECE CAKESHOP, LTD. v. COLORADO 
CIVIL RIGHTS COMM’N
 
Opinion of the Court 

Phillips met Charlie Craig and Dave Mullins when they
entered his shop in the summer of 2012.  Craig and Mul-
lins  were  planning  to  marry.    At  that  time,  Colorado  did 
not  recognize  same-sex  marriages,  so  the  couple  planned 
to  wed  legally  in  Massachusetts  and  afterwards  to  host  a 
reception  for  their  family  and  friends  in  Denver.    To  pre-
pare  for  their  celebration,  Craig  and  Mullins  visited  the 
shop and told Phillips that they were interested in order-
ing  a  cake  for  “our  wedding.”    Id.,  at  152  (emphasis  de-
leted).  They  did  not  mention  the  design  of  the  cake  they
envisioned. 

Phillips  informed  the  couple  that  he  does  not  “create”
wedding  cakes  for  same-sex  weddings.    Ibid.    He  ex-
plained, “I’ll make your birthday cakes, shower cakes, sell 
you cookies and brownies, I just don’t make cakes for same
sex  weddings.”    Ibid.  The  couple  left  the  shop  without
further discussion. 

The  following  day,  Craig’s  mother,  who  had  accompa-
nied the couple to the cakeshop and been present for their 
interaction  with  Phillips,  telephoned  to  ask  Phillips  why 
he  had  declined  to  serve  her  son.    Phillips  explained  that 
he  does  not  create  wedding  cakes  for  same-sex  weddings
because  of  his  religious  opposition  to  same-sex  marriage, 
and also because Colorado (at that time) did not recognize
same-sex  marriages.    Id.,  at  153.  He  later  explained  his
belief  that  “to  create  a  wedding  cake  for  an  event  that
celebrates something that directly goes against the teach-
ings of the Bible, would have been a personal endorsement 
and  participation  in  the  ceremony  and  relationship  that 
they were entering into.”  Ibid. (emphasis deleted). 

B 
For most of its history, Colorado has prohibited discrim-
ination  in  places  of  public  accommodation.    In  1885,  less 
than  a  decade  after  Colorado  achieved  statehood,  the 
General  Assembly  passed  “An  Act  to  Protect  All  Citizens