The European Court of Justice (ECJ) [official website] held [text, PDF] Tuesday that a Catholic-run German hospital was discriminatory in its dismissal of a Catholic doctor that had recently remarried.

The head doctor of the clinic lost his job at the Catholic St. Vinzenz Hospital in Düsseldorf in 2009 after divorcing his wife and subsequently marrying a new partner in a civil ceremony.

The appellant argued that the dismissal would not have occurred, but for the fact that he was Catholic. Adversely, his employer claimed that it was due to an alleged infringement on the duty of faith and loyalty to their stated ethos.

In their judgment, the ECJ found that the applicable EU law falls under Article 4(2) of the Council Directive 2000/78/EU [text, PDF], which establishes a general framework for equal treatment in employment and occupation.

Ultimately, the decision ruled that all decisions to subject employees with managerial duties to a good faith requirement must be subject to judicial review. Whether or not the requirement is “genuine, legitimate, and justified” and “consistent with the principle of proportionality,” must be determined by the national courts.

The final ruling in case dismissal will be made by the German judicial system.