Supreme court | Noteworthy cases

Some noteworthy cases the Supreme Court will hear in its new term that begins Monday:

Church-state separation: A Missouri church is challenging its exclusion from a state program that reimburses groups for installing rubberized surfaces on playgrounds. The Trinity Lutheran Church’s application for a grant was highly rated, but state officials said a provision of the Missouri Constitution bars them from giving public money to a church.

Disparaging trademarks: The Obama administration is defending the decision to deny trademark protection to an Asian-American band called the Slants because the term is offensive to Asians. A lower court struck down the part of federal law on which the decision was based, and the outcome of the case also could affect the Washington Redskins football team in its fight to preserve lucrative trademark protection.

Citizenship: A man who is facing deportation claims he can’t be removed from the U.S. because he was a citizen at birth. He is challenging an unusual provision of U.S. law that applies to children born outside the country to one parent who is an American and one who is not. The law makes it easier for children whose mother is a citizen to become citizens themselves.

Source: Associated Press