News Release
For Immediate Release: 5.25.26
Contact: Natalie Konstans, media@firstliberty.org
Direct: 972-941-4453
City of Irvine Targets Jewish Resident for Hosting Small Prayer Meetings in Home
Law firm sends letter urging city to follow the law and end religious hostility.
Irvine, CA—First Liberty Institute sent a letter to the City of Irvine, CA urging officials to cease penalizing local rabbi, Rafi Dadon, who hosts religious gatherings in his home to meet the religious needs of his family, neighbors, and friends. The city has been unlawfully fining Rabbi Dadon since August 2025.
You can read the demand letter here.
“It is chilling that City of Irvine officials have resorted to serving fines to a small group of Jewish residents who meet together for worship, prayer, and religious observances,” said Ryan Gardner, Senior Counsel for First Liberty Institute. “Rabbi Dadon has a constitutional right to engage in religious exercise at his home with family or friends, free from government burden and interference.”
Rabbi Rafi Dadon is a Jewish rabbi in Irvine, California, who hosts Jewish prayer meetings or “minyans,” Torah studies, and weekly Shabbat meals at his home. These small religious gatherings are open only to those who are invited by Rabbi Dadon. Hosting these events is an essential way that Rabbi Dadon serves and connects with the local Jewish community. In 2025, the City of Irvine began fining him for using his personal property to host these religious gatherings, claiming he was using his house as a synagogue in a neighborhood area. Although nearly all of his large events are held away from his house, the city insisted on targeting Rabbi Dadon for his small, intimate prayer meetings. The demand letter to the city reminds officials that these events are protected religious activity under federal law.
Attorneys state in the letter, “___”
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About First Liberty Institute
First Liberty Institute is the largest legal organization in the nation dedicated exclusively to defending religious freedom for all Americans.
To arrange an interview, contact Natalie Konstans at media@firstliberty.org or call 972-941-4453.
