The Wisconsin Catholic Charities case has implications for other religiously connected nonprofits, including hospitals, and for state unemployment systems.

The Supreme Court on Monday appeared sympathetic to the argument by a Catholic Charities chapter that Wisconsin violated the Constitution when it refused to give the group the same exemption from the state’s unemployment tax that it provides to churches,

The U.S. Supreme Court appeared sympathetic on Monday toward a bid by an arm of a Catholic diocese in Wisconsin for a religious exemption from the state's unemployment insurance tax in the latest religious rights case to reach the justices.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court had ruled that the group’s activities in serving the state’s poor were not religious enough to qualify for a tax exemption.

The case was brought by a chapter of Catholic Charities in Wisconsin, which says that it should be able to opt out of the mandatory state unemployment compensation system.

The Supreme Court signaled Monday it is poised to side with Catholic Charities in a dispute over whether religiously affiliated groups are entitled to an exemption from certain state taxes, a decision that could expand the types of groups that would receive a break under the First Amendment.