Chief Legal Officer

Holly Hollman

Pronouns: she/her
Media contact: Israel Igualate | [email protected]

Click here for high-resolution photos of Holly.

Holly Hollman is the chief legal officer of BJC, providing legal analysis of church-state issues that arise before Congress, the courts and administrative agencies. Her work includes preparing friend-of-the-court briefs, issue briefings for congressional staff and presentations for research institutions and religious groups.

She consults regularly with churches, individuals and organizations about religious liberty issues and writes a column for BJC’s magazine, Report from the Capital. Hollman often discusses matters relating to church-state relations with members of the media and has appeared in numerous publications and broadcasts. She is the co-host of BJC’s Respecting Religion podcast series.

Hollman also serves as an adjunct professor of law at the Georgetown University Law Center, where she co-teaches the Church-State Law Seminar.

Prior to her work at BJC, Hollman was an attorney in private practice specializing in employment law and litigation. She practiced in firms in Nashville, Tennessee, and in the District of Columbia. She is a member of the District of Columbia, U.S. Supreme Court and state of Tennessee bars.

Hollman earned a B.A. in politics from Wake Forest University and a J.D. from the University of Tennessee College of Law, where she was a member of the Tennessee Law Review and the National Moot Court Team.

Hollman and her husband, Jay Smith, have two sons and live in Falls Church, Virginia.

In addition to demonstrating this Court’s continuing interest in religion cases, the Groff v. DeJoy...

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Recent Media Appearances

Religion News Service

A Christian nation? At 250, America is still fighting over what that means

When people ask Holly Hollman if America is a Christian nation, she has a simple response.

“What do you mean by that?”

Read the Article
Op-Ed in Baptist News Global

Religious freedom and dignity for prisoners at US Supreme Court

“I’m hopeful the case [Landor v. Louisiana Department of Corrections] might also remind us that religious liberty can and should be a uniting commitment that protects vulnerable populations, as well as those in the Christian majority.”

Read the Op-Ed
Baptist News Global

Texas Ten Commandments law likely headed to US Supreme Court

“When the state mandates a religious text on every classroom, it is not just decorating a wall; it places the government’s weight behind one religious tradition at the expense of all others,” said Holly Hollman.

Read the Article

Respecting Religion Podcast

Holly co-hosts the Respecting Religion podcast with BJC Executive Director Amanda Tyler, examining issues at the intersection of religious freedom and the law and discussing what’s at stake for faith freedom today.

Hear All Episodes

Chief Legal Officer

Holly Hollman

Read columns by Holly

Close call preserves ruling against government-sponsored religion

Defending churches and other sensitive locations from government intrusion

Religious freedom on the ballot, in the courts and affecting your community

The Court at a crossroads

Faithful involvement in elections

The Supreme Court got something right on religion

Good news on the religious freedom frontlines

The Supreme Court’s latest religion case offers opportunity to restore statute’s meaning

Recent Media Appearances

Religion News Service

A Christian nation? At 250, America is still fighting over what that means

Op-Ed in Baptist News Global

Religious freedom and dignity for prisoners at US Supreme Court

Baptist News Global

Texas Ten Commandments law likely headed to US Supreme Court

Respecting Religion Podcast

S7, Ep. 10: Court update: Ten Commandments cases, Johnson Amendment dismissal, and SCOTUS actions

S7, Ep. 09: Why is there an upswing in anti-Sharia laws?

Best of: Were we founded as a ‘Christian nation’?

Best of: ‘How to End Christian Nationalism’

Best of: Inside the ReAwaken America tour

Best of: A decision that continues to create misguided claims: Kennedy v. Bremerton

Best of: Rob Reiner and ‘God and Country’ director Dan Partland on Christian nationalism

Best of: But … is it Christian nationalism?

Best of: Dr. Walter Brueggemann on Christian nationalism

Best of: The myth of American ‘chosenness’ with Dr. Catherine Brekus

Best of: A report, a prayer vigil, and a somber anniversary: Remembering the January 6 attack

S7, Ep. 08: ‘A vibrant and free civil society is core to religious liberty in our country’

S7, Ep. 07: Religion in the military and the latest from Trump’s Religious Liberty Commission

S7, Ep. 06: Updates on Oak Flat, the Johnson Amendment, and efforts to post the Ten Commandments