Supreme Court Hears Case of Muslims on No-Fly List

When he tried to get on a flight in Atlanta in October 2010, he was turned away. Two F.B.I. agents drove him to a bus station, and it took him about 24 hours to get home.

Mr. Tanvir quit his job. On three occasions, he bought plane tickets to visit his mother in Pakistan, who was in failing health. He was not allowed to fly. Throughout, agents told him that they would help him get off the list — if he cooperated.

Mr. Tanvir and the other men sued under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993, which generally forbids the government to impose substantial burdens on religious beliefs. As the case reached a crucial phase, the men were told that they were now free to fly.

That made moot their request for a court order removing them from the No-Fly List. The question for the justices was whether the 1993 law also allowed them to sue for money.

Edwin S. Kneedler, a lawyer for the federal government, said the answer was no, pointing to a phrase in the law that allowed for “appropriate relief.” In the context of suits against the government, he said, that phrase has been understood to exclude suits for money.