The Monks vs. The Louisiana Funeral Cartel

The Institute for Justice has teamed up with a group of monks from Saint Joseph Abbey to get Louisiana’s casket licensing law overturned. Under Louisiana law, it is a crime for anyone but a licensed funeral director to sell “funeral merchandise,” which includes caskets.

To sell caskets legally, the monks would have to abandon their calling for one full year to apprentice at a licensed funeral home, learn unnecessary skills and take a funeral industry test. They would also have to convert their monastery into a “funeral establishment” by, among other things, installing equipment for embalming human remains.

The monks face crippling fines and up to 180 days in jail. This is classic economic protectionism, and this case has a great chance of making it to the Supreme Court.

See the video above and go here for more information.