Informing faith communities about legal issues
Ill. App. Ct.: Ecclesiastical Abstention Doctrine bars challenge to denial of rental of Catholic Community Center. Religion Clause covers Sacred Heart Knanaya Catholic Community Center Building Board v. St. Thomas Syromalabar Diocese of Chicago, No. 2-18-0792 (Ill. App. Ct., May 30, 2019), here.
Religion Clause covers Holy Trinity Romanian Orthodox Monastery v. Romanian Orthodox Episcopate of America, (Mich. Ct. App. Mar. 19, 2019), here.
ELCA Legal staff to host free webinar: “Legal Checklist for Congregations.” Tom Cunniff, General Counsel to the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, and Aja M. Favors, ELCA Associate General Counsel will host a free webinar on February 21, 2019, at 1:00 p.m. E.S.T. Register here. The presentation is geared for ELCA leaders and volunteers. Download the checklist here. Here’s the description:
Continue reading “ELCA Legal staff to host free webinar: “Legal Checklist for Congregations””
“The ‘ultimate nightmare scenario’ for this historic Miami church: A $7 million tax bill” The Miami Herald reports on the case here. The church is operating a pre-K–8 school run by a for-profit, third-party administrator.
“Texas churches damaged by Harvey sue FEMA.” The Becket Fund has a press release here about the lawsuit it filed on behalf of three small Texas churches damaged by Harvey. The suit challenges the exclusion of religious organizations from disaster relief, basing the claims on the Free Exercise Clause as interpreted by Trinity Lutheran v. Comer. Access the complaint here. Access Becket Fund’s case summary for Harvest Family Church v. FEMA. Thanks to Dave Roland at the Freedom Center of Missouri for the tip. Continue reading ““Texas churches damaged by Harvey sue FEMA””
A local district of the Church of the Brethren could not assume the title of the property of a Northern-Indiana congregation that broke away from the Anabaptist denomination, according to an opinion from the Indiana Court of Appeals. The congregation had not incorporated suggested language in its deeds or in its governing documents necessary to give the church the authority to take over the congregation’s property in the event of a split. Continue reading “Indiana Church of the Brethren district cannot take title to breakaway congregation”