Under the 1995 and 2011 education laws, students were to attend religious classes by default, and those who wished to opt out of them could only do so through a written request to the school director. The National Council for Combating Discrimination criticized this as an infringement on children's freedom of conscience. On 12 November 2014, the relevant articles of law were ruled unconstitutional by the Constitutional Court of Romania, effectively abolishing the de facto compulsory religious education in Romania. The Romanian Orthodox Church protested against the ruling, claiming it is a "humiliation" for religious education, however it has no means to challenge the decision.
